CBN shares N2tn to households, businesses as Covid-19 stimulus package

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says it has disbursed a total of N2 trillion through its various intervention programmes, as at January 2021.

This was disclosed during the Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Abuja on Tuesday.

According to the bank, under its Covid-19 Targeted Credit Facility(TCF), 426,106 households and small businesses have received N192.6 billion, while 27,956 farmers have also shared N106.96 billion through the Agri-Business Small and Medium Enterprises Investment Scheme (AGSMEIS).

CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele made this disclosure while reading the communique from the Monetary Policy Committee meeting in Abuja on Tuesday.

He said, “Health Care Support Intervention Facility, N72.96 billion have been disbursed for 73 project that comprise 26 pharmaceutical projects and 47 Hospitals and Health Care Services Project in the country.”

To support the provision of employment opportunities for the Nigerian youth, Emefiele also said the Central Bank of Nigeria provided financial support through the Creative Industry Financing Initiative and Nigerian Youth Investment Fund amounting to N3.12 billion with 320 beneficiaries and N268 million with 395 beneficiaries, respectively.

The apex bank also added that it provided N18.58 billion for the procurement of 347,853 electricity reading meters to Discos in support of the National Mass Metering Programme.

Read also: Beneficiaries of CBN COVID-19 loans to receive funds 48 hours after approval

“Under the Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP), N554.63 billion had been disbursed to 2,849,490 beneficiaries since the inception of the programme, of which N61.02 billion was allocated to 359,370 dry season farmers.”

All these funds the CBN said, ” is In light of the on-going synchronized efforts by the monetary and fiscal authorities to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic”

Meanwhile, the communique also revealed that Banks’ total credit to the economy rose to N25.02tn in December of 2020.

“Aggregate domestic credit, also moved further up by 13.40 per cent in December 2020, compared with 9.48 per cent in the previous month”

“This was largely attributed to the bank’s policy on Loan-to-Deposit Ratio, complemented by its interventions in various sectors of the economy.

“Consequently, banking sector gross credit as at end-December 2020 stood at N25.02tn compared with N24.25tn at the end of November 2020, representing an increase of N774.28bn.”

The committee urged the bank to sustain its current drive to improve access to credit to the private sector while exploring other complementary initiatives, in collaboration with the Federal Government, to improve funding to critical sectors of the economy.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now