Godwin Emefiele, the governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said the apex bank has come up with strategies to mitigate the impending food crisis occasioned by the Russia and Ukraine war.
Emefiele, represented by Yila Yusuf, director, development finance department at CBN, disclosed this on Thursday in Kaduna during the unveiling of maize pyramids under the CBN/Maize Association of Nigeria’s anchor borrowers’ programme (ABP).
Speaking at the event, Emefiele revealed that the volume of maize pyramids in Kaduna were intended to serve as stock for the strategic maize reserve (SMR) to be released immediately to major millers.
He said CBN is committed to financing 600,000 hectares as the farming season approaches.
ATTENTION: Click “HERE” to join our WhatsApp group and receive News updates directly on your WhatsApp!
According to him: “Our strategy is hinged on improving productivity by providing more funding for the anchors to enable them to utilise high-quality inputs and good agronomic practices to boost output,”
“Bringing recent happenings globally into perspective, two of the top ten exporters of maize (Argentina and Brazil) experienced droughts in 2021, while another two (Ukraine and Russia) are at war.
Also Read: Debt Levels Rising Globally, Not Just in Nigeria; DMO
“This will certainly impact on maize supply globally and drive prices northwards.
“Consequently, we have planned a more robust and timely wet season to commence in April 2022 for maize and other key commodities like rice, wheat, cassava, sorghum and soyabeans to mitigate the impending food crisis occasioned by the crisis in Russia and Ukraine”
