Mr Ajibola Tajudeen, Chairman, All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN), Kwara branch, said on Thursday that 1,000 of its members had benefited from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s Anchor Borrowers Programme.
Tajudeen, who made this known while addressing newsmen in Ilorin, said that it was untrue that only politicians benefited from the scheme facilitated jointly by the CBN and the state government.
He said that the selection of beneficiaries was transparent and cut across the 16 local government areas in the state.
He said that many local farmers in different parts of Kwara who were not members of AFAN, had also benefited from the scheme.
The chairman said the beneficiaries engaged in the production of rice, maize, soya beans and cassava.
Tajudeen said that all the farmers received loans under the programme in form of farm inputs, depending on the size of their farms.
He, however, said that the inability of some farmers to pay the five per cent equity, part of the requirements for engaging in the programme, had hindered them from participating.
The chairman noted that AFAN members in Kwara had received various support from the State Government over the years, urging it to keep supporting them.
He also urged the state government to expand the scope of the scheme, to enable more farmers in the state to benefit.
The scheme was initiated by the Federal Government through the CBN as an agricultural intervention to help farmers boost production.
The Kwara government secured an N1 billion loan from the bank under the scheme for local farmers who engaged in rice, maize, soya beans and cassava production.
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