Business

AUDA-NEPAD Disburses N600m Grant To Smallholder Farmers in 7 States

Published

9 months ago

February 19, 2025

Joel Ajayi

National Coordinator of the African Union Development Agency-New Partnership for Africa’s Development ,AUDA-NEPAD, Hon. Jabiru Salisu Abdullahi, has announced that the agency will disburse N600 million to seven pilot states to support smallholder farmers across Nigeria in 2025.

This initiative aims to enhance agricultural activities, address poverty, low productivity, and resource limitations in the sector.

The pilot states include Bauchi, Cross River, Osun, Yobe, Abia, and Imo.He made this announcement during a one-day roundtable meeting of state Commissioners for Agriculture/State Coordinators with the National Coordinator/Chief Executive Officer at the maiden stakeholders meeting for the Smallholder Farmers Programme yesterday in Abuja.

According to him, this is a direct grant from AUDA-NEPAD to support the efforts of smallholder farmers.

He stated: “The total amount being disbursed to the seven pilot states is N600 million, which will be shared equally among the states. States that show additional interest can provide up to N3 billion, depending on the number of smallholder farmers.

“At AUDA-NEPAD Nigeria, we recognize that smallholder farmers are at the core of our nation’s agricultural sector. Their resilience drives food production, sustains rural economies, and significantly contributes to our GDP.”

However, persistent barriers such as limited access to finance, inadequate infrastructure, climate change, and market constraints continue to hinder their full potential. This initiative was created to tackle these challenges head-on, ensuring that smallholder farmers not only survive but thrive.

“Our commitment to agricultural transformation across Africa is unwavering. Through this support, the initiative is backed by a substantial grant, reinforcing the shared vision of a food-secure, economically vibrant, and resilient Nigeria.

“Let me be clear, this is not merely funding; it is an investment in our farmers and our future. Strict monitoring mechanisms will be in place to ensure that every aspect of the initiative is effectively implemented, with full accountability and transparency. The funds must translate into real, measurable impacts, increased productivity, improved livelihoods, and a stronger agricultural value chain.

“The Smallholder Farmers Initiative aims to create a self-sustaining agricultural ecosystem by: providing access to finance and credit for smallholder farmers; developing rural infrastructure, including storage and irrigation facilities; promoting climate-smart agricultural sustainability for the long term; creating direct market linkages to improve farmers’ incomes; and integrating technology and digital solutions for efficient farming.

“This initiative aligns with Agenda 2063 of the African Union and Nigeria’s Renewed Hope Agenda, ensuring that smallholder farmers are not left behind but are empowered as key players in national development”.He also emphasized that AUDA-NEPAD Nigeria is fully committed to ensuring that the funding provided results in tangible outcomes.

“The expectations are high, and so is our resolve. Our goal is clear: to transform agriculture into a thriving, competitive, and resilient sector. Together, we can empower millions of Nigerian farmers, ensuring that this initiative creates lasting economic and social impact”.

In her opening remarks, the Assistant Director for Programme Development and Implementation at AUDA-NEPAD, Hajia Fatimah Abubakar , provided an overview of the Smallholder Farmers Programme in the selected states across Nigeria.

She explained that the pilot states were carefully selected based on agricultural potential, needs, and alignment with national and AUDA-NEPAD agricultural priorities, with a focus on food security.

She stated that the programme reflects the agency’s unwavering commitment to support the agricultural sector and empower the hardworking men and women who form its foundation the smallholder farmers.

“The Smallholder Farmers Programme is more than just a grant. It is a partnership between us, the selected state governments, and AUDA-NEPAD Nigeria, and most importantly, the hardworking smallholder farmers who are the backbone of Nigeria’s agricultural economy. By investing in them, we are investing in a more prosperous, food-secure future for Nigeria”.

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Business

TAJBank Emerges Nigeria’s Biggest Non-Interest Bank

Published

2 weeks ago

October 23, 2025

The Gleamer

Cyril Ogar

After five years of operations in Nigeria’s rapidly evolving non-interest banking (NIB) space, TAJBank Limited has become the biggest player in the NIB subsector based on its total assets and gross earnings values.

Disclosing this during his paper presentation on the key performance indices in the non-interest banking space over the past few years at a seminar organized by Leaders Corporate Services with the theme “Roles of Non-Interest Banks In SMEs’ Financing” for SME entrepreneurs yesterday in Abuja, an investment expert, Mr. Olabode Akeredolu-Ale, maintained that based on the non-interest banks’ approved financial statements for the half year 2025, TAJBank currently remained the biggest in terms of its total assets.

The expert, a chartered stockbroker, specifically confirmed that his recent investment researches on the NIBs and their financial performances showed that TAJBank, with its total assets rising to N1.017 trillion in half year 2025 up from N953.098 billion as of December 2024, which is about N53 billion higher than the nearest NIB’s assets, now ranked top in the banking subsector.

According to him, TAJBank’s gross earnings for H1 2025 also surged to N53.752 billion from N32.86 billion as of December 2024, representing a 64% growth, and higher than the nearest NIB’s gross earnings in the period under review.

This is even as he disclosed that on the NIBs’ earnings per share during the half year, TAJBank reported N61.36 kobo earnings per share, about 92% higher than the earnings per share of the next NIB during the period.

Akeredolu-Ale, who is also a chartered accountant, clarified: “The figures I am reeling out here on the NIBs are sourced from the banking and capital market regulatory institutions’ platforms, which anyone can access to verify.

“I am part of this event because of my research interest in non-interest banking and how the players in the subsector in Nigeria can help to leverage their competencies in innovation and ethical banking to support our MSMEs.

“Today, the MSMEs cannot access DMBs’ loans due to high lending rates and other inclement macroeconomic factors. This is where I think the NIBs have become very crucial to Nigeria’s economic growth.

“Overall, my findings on the NIBs indicated that they are all trying their best with non-interest loans to support entrepreneurs, particularly the MSMEs owners. I have advised those of them at this seminar to explore the cost-friendly financing options of the NIBs to grow their businesses by opening accounts with the NIBs”, the expert added.

Another speaker at the event, Benjamin Chukwudi, also commended the NIBs for their “catalytic roles in helping SMEs to access interest-free loans and providing them the needed financial management advisory, which have been helping them in sustaining their operations in the face of rising cost of doing business in the country.”

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