2 BUSINESS DAY C002D5556 NEWS CBN to reduce CRR of banks that lend to SMEs ... relaxes stringent conditions for N26.8bn AgricSME funds HOPE MOSES-ASHIKE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has promised to provide forbearance to deposit money banks by way of reducing their Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) for lending to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). “CBN will provide some form of forbearance. For example, if you are a banker that have lent some percentage of your SME loan to a set of people in the target area, maybe your CRR will be lower than other banks that have not reached that level. In other words, if you want us to ease your CRR to have more money to loan to these set of people, then certain percentage of the loan should go to this people,” Godwin Emefiele, CBN governor, said on Sunday in Lagos after Bankers’ Committee retreat. This is coming after the CBN and the Bankers’ Committee over the weekend revaluated the various intervention schemes available to SMEs with the aim of ensuring access to finance for productivity that would create jobs and result to inclusive growth. Consequently, the CBN has relaxed some stringent conditions for accessing the N26.8 billion Agri-Business, Small and Medium Enterprises Investment Scheme (AGSMEIS). The fund can now be accessed at 5 percent interest rate instead of 9 percent. Emefiele, who addressed the press in Lagos after the ninth Bankers’ Committee retreat with the theme ‘Improving financial access, job creation, and inclusive growth in Nigeria,’ was worried that no one had been able to access the AGSMEIS fund since its establishment in April this year. “In the month of April this year, we were able to put together about N26bn but as we speak even at this time, not one penny of that fund has been disbursed. It was a shame, according to the views expressed that for year we will have N26bn sitting in the CBN whereas there are people who needed access to funding. We decided to revaluate the conditions under which the facilities were to be made available,” he said. The fund, which was set up as an equity fund will no longer be equity fund rather there would be some form of preference share arrangement or like a debt structure, which makes it easy for those who want to access it. The bankers committee agreed that at least 50 per cent of the fund would be set aside for direct SME disbursement. As a result of this the CBN said banks must set up MSME Desks. “On the part of the CBN, the central bank has entrepreneurial development centres in the six geo-political zones in the country and that the central bank on its part would make its Enterprise Development Centres available to train people that would benefit from the scheme”. Speaking further, he said, “We are going to have some venture companies that would take about 45 percent of the fund to identify specific projects. What are those projects? We still talk about someone who will go into the business of converting cassava to starch, or someone or group of people by way of cooperative, who want to go into the business of producing toothpick. “These will walk under certain structure after we have built capacity for them, with maybe a 10 percent or 20 percent equity stake just to make them have a stake in the project and then we provide the remaining fund under the venture capital arrangement.” Tuesday <strong>12</strong> <strong>Dec</strong>ember <strong>2017</strong> Ambode to celebrate Christmas with locals in 20 centres JOSHUA BASSEY Governor of Lagos State Akinwunmi Ambode says he will be joining residents of the state to celebrate this year’s Christmas across 20 centres in the state. This, according to Ambode, is to further promote bonding with and among the locals as well as enhance community participation in governance. It would be recalled that Ambode, while campaigning prior to the 2015 governorship, promised to US ambassador launches YALI transparency campaign in Lagos ODINAKA ANUDU United States Ambassador W. Stuart Symington on Monday launched the Young Africa Leaders Initiative’s (YALI) ‘Transparency and Good Governance Campaign’ in Lagos. Members of the Young Africa Leaders Initiative (YALI) Network on Monday kick-started a month-long ‘Transparency and Good Governance Campaign’ in commemoration of the <strong>2017</strong> International Anti-Corruption Day. The campaign seeks to explore ways in which individuals can cultivate and enrun an inclusive government, where no section of the society would be left behind. Speaking after being honoured with an award by Christian Conscience Group of Nigeria, led by the chairman, Enoch Ajiboso, in Ikeja, Ambode, AbdulLateef Abdul-Hakeem, commissioner for home affairs, said the resolve to mark the Christmas with the locals was also to ensure greater number of residents participate. “I am not a governor for one religion. I am for all. And that is why we have decided that the Christmas party courage more transparent, accountable behaviour and involves a mix of online and in-person activities, including blog posts, ethical dilemma videos, Twitter chats, and an online course on responsible should be decentralized. They will gather in the 20 centres to celebrate at grassroots level,” Ambode said at the event, last week. Earlier, Ajiboso explained that the governor was honoured with the award to encourage his administration’s efforts in infrastructure development and the transformation being witnessed in Lagos. “This is visible in the infrastructural development, tourism, job creation and economic endowment. Aside these, the peaceful coexistence witnessed among major religion in Lagos state. leadership and transparency. In his goodwill message, Symington lauded the YALI Network members for dedicating their time and resources to the all-important goal of enhancing transparency.
Tuesday <strong>12</strong> <strong>Dec</strong>ember <strong>2017</strong> BUSINESS DAY 35