Development Bank of Nigeria, a good intervention… thinking out loud

CBN Governor

Mr.Godwin Emefiele

President Goodluck Jonathan inaugurated the Development bank of Nigeria with N300 billion seed money, that is specifically and first ever for the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises. This cannot come at a better time than now, when Nigerians have to look outside the box of white collar jobs to opportunities for self reliance in other areas. The agricultural sector is witnessing a quantum leap in growth and there is influx of the younger generation to replace the old, un-energetic farmers in the farm. These groups of Nigerians are in dire need of Capital to start or grow their businesses. The agricultural sector players in particular require medium to long term loan which this intervention will provide; same goes for some other sectors of the economy where opportunities abound.
The initiative is unprecedented and we appreciate the vision of Mr. President for having this scale of businesses at heart.  

Gari Processing

 However, i wish to share my thoughts on the need for the managers of this institution to understand that this is purely an intervention initiative to revive these categories of industry players; that, it will only stand the test of time and achieve its set goal if the operators don't turn it into the normal commercial banks with stringent conditions set up for accessing the fund. The operators must realize that the target beneficiaries are mostly not going to have the collateral like Landed properties in Abuja or Lekki with C of O, but other flexible conditions should be looked into which are simple enough for the reach of  the intended beneficiaries. There should a strong regulatory framework put in place to monitor the delivery of services of the bank in relation to this intervention. 

         It will therefore be a delight for some of us who are passionate about agriculture being the leading non oil sector driving the economy of this nation, to see small scale farmers and agro-processors, marketing, Shoe makers and Tailors smiling in and out of the bank, for the betterment of the economy and general welfare of the citizens. 

 May God bless the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Toyin Adetunji