CBN Disburses N159.21 Billion In MSME Loans To 330,128 Women

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The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has disbursed N159.21 billion to 330,128 females as part of the Targeted Credit Facility (TCF) designed to assist households and Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Godwin Emefiele, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, stated this at the ‘Gender Equality Today for a Sustainable Tomorrow’ event in Abuja.

According to him, the bank has supported women through other intervention funds such as AGSMEIS, MSMEDF, and other schemes, in addition to issuing gender-mandated regulations to pave the way for gender diversity and inclusiveness at the bank’s top management levels.

Emefiele stated that the apex bank had demonstrated its commitment to diversity and inclusiveness under his leadership by designing and implementing a wide range of initiatives, programs, and interventions to promote entrepreneurship, reduce poverty, generate employment, and deepen financial inclusion for women.

“Females have reaped enormous benefits from the bank’s intervention programs, such as the Agribusiness Small and Medium Enterprise Investment Scheme (AGSMEIS) and the COVID-19 TCF,” he said.

“Specifically, as of January 2022, 33 percent (N44.1 billion) of the N134.67 billion disbursed to 37,273 AGSMEIS beneficiaries went to 12,511 female beneficiaries.” Similarly, 45 percent of the N349.51 billion disbursed to 712,442 total beneficiaries under the TCF, or N159.21 billion, went to 330,128 female beneficiaries.

The MSME Development Fund (MSMEDF) was designed to allocate at least 60% of the fund to women and women-owned enterprises, with women accounting for 60.3 percent of the 229,579 beneficiaries.” Furthermore, female borrowers accounted for 92,091 of the 211,306 financial statements currently registered in the collateral registry, accounting for 43.6 percent.”