President Muhammadu Buhari has applauded the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for effectively ensuring financial system stability in the country over the years.
President Buhari made the commendation yesterday at the 15th Annual Banking & Finance Conference of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) Theme: Repositioning the Financial Services Industry for an Evolving Glocal Context” holding in Abuja.
Represented by the minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, Mr Buhari assured the entire banking and finance community that his administration will continue to support the industry in all appropriate ways to ensure the sector continues to deliver on its mandates while creating value innovation for its customers.
Buhari acknowledged that CBN’s interventions, especially in the agricultural sector has helped to put the nation’s agricultural sector on a global map.
Also, chairman of Union Bank of Nigeria Plc Mr Farouk Gumel in his keynote address said the country has begun an agricultural renaissance over the past seven years.
Under the Godwin Emefiele-led CBN, Nigeria now has some 70 rice mills, compared to only a handful at the start of 2015. The same goes for fertiliser plants. “We now have around 50. They are thriving businesses that serve our farmers,” Mr Gumel said, adding, “Ask anyone who manufactures sacks. They will explain the growth they are seeing in demand.”
Gumel said understanding the importance of farms and small businesses for growth is by no means new for Nigerian banks.
He urged operators in the Nigerian banking sector to devote more funding to agriculture financing to be able to compete with their global counterparts.
“If we are to make the most of the opportunities that Glocal offers in an increasingly uncertain world, we need to see greater coordination between monetary, trade and fiscal policy. One would think that is a local request,” Gumel said.
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