By Chiangi Avese, Makurdi
International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)-Value Chain Development Programme (VCDP) has advised farmers to borrow for the purpose of investing in agriculture and not to use for other ventures.
The IFAD-VCDP, Rural Finance Officer, Mrs Rosemary Iorngirim, gave the advice at a stakeholders meeting Monday in Makurdi.
Mrs. Iorngirim said, “if farmers borrow and invest in farming they would not encounter any challenge of repaying the loan. If farmers borrow and pay back at the stipulated time, they would be qualified for other loans with higher amounts”.
She also advised the farmers to always insure their farms against natural disasters, stressing that if their farms were destroyed by disasters they could be paid indemnity by the insurance companies.
She encouraged farmers to indulge in tripartite partnerships for their overall benefit, adding that the partnership should be between them and off-takers as well as financial institutions.
“A partnership brings together institutional capabilities and human resources in the form of skills, experiences and ideas to tackle common problems that are often beyond the capacity of a single organization or group,” Mrs. Iorngirim said.
Also, Mrs Susan Adoga, Loan Recovery Officer, Lift Above Poverty (LAPO), lamented that most farmers do not pay back their loans. A situation which discourage most institutions from assisting farmers with resources, be they cash or inputs.
Mr Isaac Uchenna, Field Coordinator of Olam, said that Olam was out to ensure that both farmers and the company enjoy a win-win situation for the overall good of the agricultural sector.
Uchenna lamented that most bank clients sale their property to the banks indirectly by presenting them as collaterals.
“Collateral is no longer helping matters. People collect loans using their property as collateral with the aim of abandoning the collaterals with the banks because they had wanted to sale their property but people were not willing to buy. This is alarming,” Mr. Uchenna said.
Mr Candid Okalanwa, the Business Banking Officer, First City Monument Bank (FCMB), Makurdi branch, disclosed that the bank always ensured a mutual and beneficial relationship for farmers, emphasizing that it was willing to assist farmers with loans to enable them actualize their dreams.
