Aduragbemi Omiyale
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said it was taking steps to help the country save about $580 million spent annually to import cassava by-products.
The Governor of the CBN, Mr Emefiele, said this on Thursday at the commissioning of the Rivers Cassava Processing Company.
The integrated facility was established by the Rivers State Government in collaboration with Shell Petroleum Development Corporation, the Dutch Embassy Investment Nigeria Limited and their technical partners.
The Rivers Cassava Processing Company was designed to support improved production and processing of cassava into high-quality flour in the state.
Speaking at the unveiling, Mr Emefiele said the cassava processing facility will help to support the CBN’s mandate of promoting economic growth for Nigeria, adding that it will also provide farmers with a verifiable platform to access finance from the apex bank and other financial institutions through its Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP).
“With the capacity to process over 45,000 tons of cassava, this facility will provide high-quality cassava flour for households, industries and bakeries.
“The facility will help in reducing our reliance on imports of cassava by-products, which serves as a key input in the production of food items in several factories. Nigeria imports over $580 million worth of cassava by-products annually,” the CBN chief said.
Mr Emefiele said the developmental finance initiatives at the CBN is focused on creating an enabling environment that will drive both public and private sectors participation in the real sector with strategic deliverables around price stability, job creation, financial inclusion, import substitution and accretion to foreign reserve.
According to him, Rivers State has accessed over N13 billion from the various intervention programs, noting that the loan status remains in good standing.
The CBN Governor disclosed that the bank “remains committed to working with the state governments in supporting smallholder farmers and processors across various commodities such as cassava, palm oil and fisheries.”
