Business
Edo Farmers Demand Urgent Measures To Curb Food Crisis
Farmers in Edo State have called on the Federal Government
to take urgent measures to avert imminent food crisis as a result of flooding
in parts of the country.
Coordinator, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN),
Alhaji Abdulahi Mohammed, in Edo North Senatorial district, made the call in an
interview with newsmen in Auchi.
Mohammed observed that the floods had destroyed hundreds of
hectares of farms in the state, adding that “even, the few farms that may have
been spared, will have poor harvest”.
According to him, in Edo North alone, the flood destroyed
all farmlands in Etsako Central, Etsako East and Esan South-East Local Government
Areas.
He explained that rice, yam and cassava farmers were mostly
affected by the flood.
“Without rice from Udaba, Udochi and Anegbette in Etsako
Central, yam and cassava from Etsako East and Esan South East, there will be no
food in the state.
“It is, therefore, urgently imperative on government to find
a lasting solution to the problem to avoid serious food and health crisis as
well as social problems”.
Similarly, an extension agent with Edo Agricultural
Development Programme (ADP), Mr Ekins Jimoh, called for financial grants and
farm inputs to farmers in the state to reduce the effect of the flood disaster.
Jimoh said, “all the farmers need from the federal and
state governments now are farm inputs like seedlings, fertilisers and tractors
to assist them to get back.
“The farmers lost all they had laboured for throughout the
year to the flood, and in order to encourage them to cope with the situation,
government should, as a matter of urgency, come to their aid”.
It would be recalled that more than 20 communities in the
three affected council areas in Edo North were submerged by water from River
Niger.
Credit to Nigeria’s private sector rose to N83.26 trillion in June 2026 from N81.04 trillion in May, signifying a positive balance of N2.22 trillion month-on-month.
Year-on-year, the figure represents a nine per cent increase compared with the N76.13 trillion recorded in June 2025. The latest figures come as the CBN continues to balance efforts to control inflation with the need to support economic growth and expand credit to businesses.
The CBN data shows that credit to Nigeria’s private sector increased by approximately 2.74 per cent month-on-month between May and June 2026. Also, the CBN data noted that credit to the government fell slightly to N40.03 trillion from N40.38 trillion. Other assets, net, dropped to N10.76 trillion from N12.63 trillion.
The credit surge signifies sustained growth in lending to businesses and other private-sector borrowers during the month. The rise in private sector credit was recorded alongside an increase in net domestic credit, despite declines in credit to government and other assets.
Further analysis of the report says that compared with June 2025, private sector credit rose by about N7.13 trillion yea-on-year but net domestic credit increased by approximately N1.87 trillion during the month.
The CBN’s relatively tight monetary policy stance notwithstanding, more banks still loaded funds to the private sector within the period. The Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) held its 306th meeting on July 20 and 21.
The Committee reviewed recent developments in the global and domestic economies, assessed emerging risks to the outlook and considered their implications for monetary policy and retained all rates.
The Committee decided to retain the Monetary Policy Rate at 26.5 per cent; the Standing Facilities Corridor around the MPR at +50/-450 basis points and retain the Cash Reserve Requirement (CRR) for Deposit Money Banks at 45.00 per cent, Merchant Banks at 16.00 per cent, and non-TSA public sector deposits at 75.00 per cent.
The MPC decision means that credit extension in the private sector will likely continue to rise because of rising confidence in the sector and calls by stakeholders for banks to invest in the private scetor instead of government securities.
