The National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) has commenced the validation of its proposed Non-Interest Finance Framework and Guidelines as part of efforts to expand agricultural financing and strengthen food security.

The Executive Secretary of NADF, Mohamed Ibrahim, disclosed this yesterday at a roundtable and validation session on the proposed framework.

Ibrahim said the initiative is intended to give farmers, agribusinesses and other participants across the agricultural value chain access to a broader range of innovative financing options.

He said the objective is not simply to introduce another financing framework but to broaden the financing ecosystem for agriculture by ensuring that every credible financing option is available to Nigerian farmers, agribusinesses, and other value chain actors,” Ibrahim said.

According to him, the framework and guidelines were presented as draft documents to enable stakeholders to examine the proposals and contribute their expertise before they are finalised.

He added that the effectiveness of the initiative would depend not only on the quality of the framework but also on partnerships and a collective commitment to its implementation.

Also speaking at the session, the Director of the Development Finance Advisory Department of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr Paul Oluikpe, said Nigeria’s agricultural financing requirements remained substantial.

Oluikpe linked the scale of the financing need to the country’s population, the importance of agriculture to the economy and the challenges affecting the sector.

The validation exercise is part of NADF’s effort to broaden financing options available to participants in Nigeria’s agricultural value chain.

Source The Guardian