Economy
FG, Agro Dealers Quarrel over N66b Debt

There is a misunderstanding between the Federal Government and agro dealers and suppliers that participated in the Growth Enhancement Scheme (GES).
This is because the Ministry of Agriculture claimed it has paid over N20 billion of the N66 billion debt to the agro dealers and suppliers.
However, the Nigeria Renascent Group, representing the agro dealers, disagreed with the government, saying it has refused to pay what is owed the suppliers and agro dealers, resulting in progressive collapse of their businesses and death of some participants of the GES Programme.
Speaking with Sunday Telegraph in a telephone interview, the Director of Agribusiness, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Engineer Ohiari Badmus Jatto, said that all the documents and information relating to the non-payment of the outstanding debt owed to the agro dealers have been made available to the Federal Ministry of Finance, and they have made part payment to the suppliers. He also added that there are plans to settle the balance soon.
The debt was accumulated through GES programme, as part of the Agricultural Transformation Agenda, which encouraged firms to supply fertilizers and seeds to agro dealers for delivery to farmers.
Coordinator of Nigeria Renascent Group, Mr Abdulrasaq Lawal, some participants in the scheme have lost their lives due to the non-payment of their money by the Federal Government, even as many can no longer pay their children’s school fees.
“Participants are dying by the day. Instances will be given. Musa Baba, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Diamond Fertilizer based in Kano, died in December 2016 from complications not unrelated to his inability to meet his obligation to creditors,” he claimed.
Preliminary investigation revealed that the federal government is owing his company over N1 billion. “Also the story of Gali Gali in Kaduna is not different from that of Musa Baba. ‘Gali Gali’ as he is fondly referred to by all, was a well-known force in the fertilizer market. His company, Gali Global, was at the forefront in championing the GES cause; he took it personal as a way to get his people to enjoy direct interventions from government.
“He went all out to mobilize farmers to register. His personal input and resources were put in ensuring the GES was a success.
“The result, over N1 billion, the chunk of which is a bank loan, is trapped. He died in the late 2015 of heart and blood related issues,” he said.
He urged the Federal Government to pay the debt to the participants in order to bring an end to the death of participants of the GES programme and ensure that all hands will be on deck in ensuring that there is food for all and eradicate famine in the country, which according to him, is imminent with the present situation of things.
Also speaking recently, a participant who pleaded anonymity, said that he has closed his company because banks were after him, adding that he is hiding in shame because he cannot face the people who had assisted him financially to make supplies to the Ministry of Agriculture.
On the claim by the Ministry that it has made part payment to the suppliers, he urged the Ministry to desist from playing politics with the debt owed agro dealers in the country.
He lamented that the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Audu Ogbeh, has been silent over the debt, saying that this is the worst situation they have ever experienced with any government in the country.
He urged the Minister to make public who got the purported N20 billion part payment from the N66 billion accumulated debt.
He further urged the Presidency, senators and House of Representatives members to intervene in the situation, adding that some of them collected loan from banks when the United States American dollars was lower than what is obtainable now.
“That is another challenge we will face in repaying the loan to the banks whenever the Federal Government decides to settle the debt,” he said.
Director of a Non-governmental organisation, Agricultural Development Watch Initiative, Dr Mark Adebisi, lamented that a situation where people will make financial commitment to support a government project and they are then treated as if they are no longer important is a bad omen.
He lamented that efforts by the group to get the Chairman, Senate Committee on Agriculture, Mr Abdullahi Adamu; Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun and Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Heineken Lokpobiri, to assist them ensure that the suppliers are paid their money did not bear fruit.
A highly placed official of the Agriculture and Rural Development Ministry, who spoke with Sunday Telegraph on condition of anonymity, said there are a lot about the debts which Nigerians don’t know about.
According to him, the debt was not N66 billion but N47 billion. He added that the agro dealers over inflated the money owed them by the Ministry, thinking that it would be easy for them to get the money from government.
https://newtelegraphonline.com/business/fg-agro-dealers-bicker-n66bn-debt/
Economy
BNB Price Reflects Changing Dynamics in the Digital Asset Market
Economy
NASD Unlisted Security Index Crosses 4,000-point Benchmark Again
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange achieved a milestone on Friday, April 24, 2026, after five securities on the platform helped with a 1.85 per cent growth.
Data showed that the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) again crossed the 4,000-point benchmark yesterday.
The index chalked up 73.64 points during the trading day to close at 4,052.59 points compared with the preceding session’s 3,978.95 points, while the market capitalisation added N5.38 billion to finish at N2.424 trillion versus Thursday’s closing value of N2.380 trillion.
The price gainers were led by Okitipupa Plc, which grew by N25.00 to sell at N305.00 per share compared with the previous price of N280.00 per share. Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc gained N6.92 to close at N76.26 per unit versus N69.34 per unit, Afriland Properties Plc appreciated by N1.00 to N17.00 per share from N18.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc improved by 55 Kobo to N99.55 per unit from N99.00 per unit, and Food Concepts Plc increased by 5 Kobo to N2.70 per share from N2.65 per share.
However, there was a price loser, MRS Oil, which dipped by N21.75 to N195.75 per unit from N217.50 per unit.
During the final session of the week, the value of securities jumped 75.2 per cent to N41.3 million from N23.6 million units, and the number of deals expanded by 62.9 per cent to 44 deals from 27 deals, while the volume of securities declined marginally by 0.9 per cent to 447,403 units from 451,522 units.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc was the most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, trailed by Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units valued at N415.7 million, and Infrastructure Guarantee Credit Plc with 400 million units traded for N1.2 billion.
GNI was also the most active stock by value (year-to-date) with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by CSCS Plc with 59.6 million units transacted for N4.0 billion, and Okitipupa Plc with 27.8 million units exchanged for N1.9 billion.
Economy
Naira Slips to N1,358/$1 as FX Reserves, Policy Uncertainty Concerns
By Adedapo Adesanya
It was not a good day for the Nigerian Naira in the currency market on Friday, April 24, as its value depreciated against the major foreign currencies at the close of transactions.
In the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX), it lost N4.53 or 0.33 per cent against the United States Dollar yesterday to trade at N1,358.44/$1, in contrast to the N1,353.91/$1 it was exchanged on Thursday.
Equally, the domestic currency slipped against the Pound Sterling in the official market during the session by N8.14 to close at N1,834.02/£1, compared with the previous rate of N1,825.88/£1 and dropped N8.01 against the Euro to sell at N1,590.73/€1 versus N1,582.72/€1.
Also, the Naira depreciated against the US Dollar at the GTBank FX desk on Friday by N4 to quote at N1,370/$1 compared with the previous session’s N1,366/$1, and at the parallel market, it depleted by N5 to settle at N1,380/$1 versus the preceding day’s N1,375/$1.
Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated that NFEM interbank turnover surged to N43.562 million across 68 deals, up from N28.117 million the previous day.
Despite the CBN’s reassurance that the recent drop in external reserves is not worrisome, the market remains unsettled by persistent concerns over liquidity constraints, policy transparency, and weakening confidence in Nigeria’s FX market as gross reserves continue to decline to $48.4 billion.
The outlook for the Dollar appears supported by broader macro risks, including elevated oil prices tied to the tanker traffic disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and a continued US-Iran standoff over ceasefire negotiations.
A look at the digital currency market showed that investors are sitting on the edge as the US Dollar rebounded amid geopolitical and inflation risks despite continued inflows into US spot bitcoin Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs).
Solana (SOL) rose by 1.2 per cent to sell $86.45, Cardano (ADA) appreciated by 1.1 per cent to $0.2517, Dogecoin (DOGE) grew by 0.9 per cent to $0.0989, Ripple (XRP) improved by 0.3 per cent to $1.43, Ethereum (ETH) soared by 0.2 per cent to $2,316.83, and Binance Coin (BNB) chalked up 0.1 per cent to sell for $637.44.
However, TRON (TRX) depreciated by 1.3 per cent to $0.3235, and Bitcoin (BTC) lost 0.2 per cent to close at $77,562.27, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) closed flat at $1.00 each.
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