The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has called on the 30, 000 cotton farmers in Kano state, who benefited from agric loan under the Anchor Borrowers programme to ensure prompt repayment of the facility.
Kano CBN Branch Controller, Alhaji Ali Abdulkadir made the call at the flag off of Recovery of Cotton Outputs for 2019 planting season, organised by the National Cotton Association of Nigeria (NACOTA), on Tuesday in Kano.
He reminded cotton farmers, who benefited from the facility, not to delay in the repayment as the loan was a revolving one which other farmers were expected to benefit in subsequent years.
“The beneficiaries should come willingly and pay because it is essential that they pay back so that others can also benefit. If they don’t pay it means they’re trying to terminate the programme.
“It should be a revolving fund, as you collect, you produce, you sell and then pay the loan so that others that have not benefited earlier can also benefit,” he said.
Abdulkadir said no fewer than 30, 000 registered cotton farmers who collected the loans were expected to repay the facility pointing out that each of them received N174, 000, including inputs and cash as total loan package.
“I am advising the leadership of the association to embark on an aggressive recovery because the loan was given to farmers through the association and it is the association that can identify the farmers,” he said.
The branch controller explained that the CBN had also extended similar loans to rice and wheat farmers as well as farmers producing other commodities to enhance food production in line with the President Muhammadu Buhari’s policy on food security.
Earlier in his remarks, Kano Deputy Governor, Dr Nasiru Gawuna who was also the state’s Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural development, enjoined farmers to repay their loans so that others could benefit from the programme in future.
Gawuna, represented by Director, Admin and General services, in the ministry Hajiya Zahra Sulaiman commended the cotton farmers for setting the pace for others to follow in the repayment of the loan.
Also speaking, the state chairman of NACOTAN, Alhaji Lawan Aliyu commended the Federal Government for including cotton farmers in the Anchor Borrowers programme.
He said this would go along way in enhancing the living standard of farmers in addition to ending the importation of the commodity.
