In a bid to improve financial inclusion of farmers, the Federal Government of Nigeria and International Fund for Agricultural Development -Value Chain Development Programme, FGN/IFAD-VCDP, and Development Exchange Centre (DEC) Thursday, signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, to boost farmers’ financial inclusion.
The signing was done in Bauchi State at the headquarters of DEC, a non-for-profit microfinance institution where the DEC, signed on behalf of DEC, while the National Programme Coordinator, NPC, Dr Fatima Aliyu, signed on behalf of VCDP.
It was made known by Dr Aliyu who led the VCDP delegation to DEC that objective of the VCDP is increased incomes, enhanced food security and reduced vulnerability for smallholder farmers, particularly women and youths in the participating nine States of Anambra, Benue, Ebonyi, Enugu, Kogi, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun and Taraba States with 135, 000 farmers as direct beneficiaries and over 1 million farmers as indirect beneficiaries are currently under the programme, which will end by 2027.
Dr Aliyu who was represented by VCDP National Rural Finance Officer, Mr Musa Seriki stated that the partnership with DEC started when VCDP and DEC signed the first MoU in December 2021 adding that the partnership has been successful with VCDP farmers accessing loans and other financial services from DEC.
She said: “We are happy with the results from our partnership with DEC. Over 2,000 of our farmers are accessing financial services with DEC”.
“The MoU we just signed with DEC will be for a period of two years 2025-2026 and we are looking forward to more results as we have expanded the scope of the partnership to cover three more states of Anambra, Ebonyi and Enugu that were not covered in the initial MoU signed in 2021”.
“Thanks to the Federal Government and IFAD for an extension of the programme by another two years, which made VCDP come back for the extension of this MoU, with DEC”.
The VCDP NPC also disclosed that, “from the commencement from the partnership four years ago, the programme has succeeded in improving financial inclusion for greater number of farmers who have accessed financial services such as loans, savings, financial literacy trainings and the farmers did not default in paying back the loans”.
In her remarks, the Executive Director, DEC, Mrs Helen Abah, made it known that IFAD is a trusted partner of DEC and they did not hesitate with signing a MoU with VCDP having collaborated with closed IFAD Projects-RUFIN and CASP previously.
Mrs Abah acknowledged the MoU between VCDP and DEC had been successful.
She added that, “Through the support of VCDP, we developed 5 financial products along rice and cassava value chains and we have disbursed N400 million naira to over 2,000 VCDP beneficiaries. Initially, we covered 5 VCDP states, however, with this new MoU, we will extend our coverage to 3 other states, Anambra, Ebonyi and Enugu because of the successes recorded in the 5 states.”
“Through this partnership, we have been able to reach poor and vulnerable farmers in areas in which ordinarily we do not have our coverage with the farmers receiving financial services to support their farming activities”.
Mrs Abah disclosed that VCDP beneficiaries that have been supported are in DEC’s database and DEC would continue to extend financial services to them after VCDP’s exit.
She said: “we are strategizing and putting systems in place that even after the exit of the VCDP, we will sustain what we have started so the VCDP beneficiaries will continue to have opportunities to receive financial services from our organisation”.
