FG To Boost Agriculture With $4.5b Chinese Loan

Inline with the resolve of the Federal Government to diversify the economy especially through agriculture, President Muhammadu Buhari has authorised the Ministry of Finance, Budget and National Planning and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to work out technical details of $4.5billion Chinese loan to Nigeria.

According to the FederalGovernment, the loan has a repayment period of 20 years with 5 years moratorium and an interest rate of one percent per annum.

Zamfara State Governor, Abdulazeez Yari, and the Minister of Agricultural Resources, Audu Ogbeh disclosed President Buhari’s approval to Journalists after a meeting at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Yari explained that the loan “is part of negotiations held to deal with the procurement of needed machinery for agricultural development in all states of the federation when the president visited China last year.

“They are giving us a credit line of $4.5 billion which will cover the machinery and infrastructure that is rural earth dams, irrigation, and the loan has a 20 years repayment term with five years moratorium.

“Understanding the economy of Nigeria, we negotiated to give a counterpart funding of 10 percent which we believe Nigeria can do and we are targeting the natural resources fund from the counterpart funding,” the governor said.

He explained that discussions are already being held with the Chinese group, the Nigerian governors and the technical committee that was set up by the minister and the ministry of agriculture and rural development.

Explaining further, Audu Ogbeh: “The Chinese are willing to supply us these things for a long term basis, 20 years credit at an interest rate of one percent per annum. A committee has been working on the matter and we are close to sorting out all the small details and that is why we came to see the President”