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Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has inaugurated a N10 billion farmer-to-finance fund set up by the Association of Non-Bank Micro-Finance Institutions of Nigeria (ANMFIN).Inaugurating the fund in Abuja recently, Osinbajo said it would assist agribusinesses to access funds and reduce poverty rate among unbanked rural farmers.
The vice president who was represented by the Managing Director of the Bank of Industry (BOI), Mr. Olukayode Pitan, said about 1.2 million people in the world were in extreme poverty, while 67 per cent of Nigerians were poor and depended on agriculture for both employment and livelihood.
He said agriculture which contributed 25 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and was among the six sectors prioritised in the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) to revamp the nation’s sick economy deserved increased funding. He lauded the fund set up by ANMFIN, adding that private sector involvement in funding agriculture in Nigeria was crucial.
Photo Caption: Vice President Yemi Osinbajo
