Bank of Agriculture Limited is the nation’s foremost agricultural and rural development finance institution. It was incorporated in 1972 as Nigerian Agricultural Bank (NAB), in 1978, the name was changed to Nigerian Agricultural and Co-operative Bank Limited (NACB) to reflect the inclusion of co-operative financing into its broader mandate.
In October, 2001, following the Federal Government’s effort to streamline the operations of its Agencies, that were believed to be performing overlapping functions, three institutions Nigerian Agricultural and Co-operative Bank Limited (NACB), People’s Bank of Nigeria (PBN) and the risk assets of the Family Economic Advancement Programme (FEAP) were merged to form Nigerian Agricultural, Co-operative & Rural Development Bank Limited.
In October 2010, following the rebranding of the Bank to reflect its institutional transformation Programme, the Bank adopted the new name Bank of Agriculture Limited (BOA)
OWNERSHIP STRUCTURE
The Bank is wholly owned by the Federal Government of Nigeria with its shares held by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) (40%) and Federal Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) (60%). It is supervised by Federal Ministry of Agriculture. It has an Authorized Share Capital of N50 Billion (Fifty Billion Naira)
KEY MANDATE
The Banks key mandates are:
Provision of credit to support all activities in the Agricultural Value Chain
Provision of non-agricultural micro credit to the poor segment of the society comprising rural artisans, petty traders etc.
Capacity development for the promotion of co-operatives and agricultural information systems.
Provision of technical support and extension services
Boosting of opportunities for self-employment in the rural areas to stem rural-urban migration.
Inculcation of banking habits at the grass-roots of Nigerian society.
Credit Functions
Bank of Agriculture credit functions are activated at the level of direct Lending, on-lending, collaboration, and monitoring of credit.
This activity involves:
• Direct lending to qualified loan applicants engaged in agricultural and non-agricultural small businesses
• Providing credit facilities to issuing organizations through our on-lending service
• Monitoring the flow of ground level rural credit
Developmental Functions
Credit is a critical factor in development of agriculture, the rural areas, and small business in general. This is because it drives capital formation and technology upgrade.
Bank of Agriculture activity in this area involves the direct making of loans and strengthening of local micro finance banks, which deliver credit at the local community level.
We have embarked of various initiatives to strengthen the cooperative credit structure at local and state government level as well as rural micro finance banks. The effect is that adequate and timely credit is made available to the needy.
In order to reinforce the credit functions and to make credit more productive, Bank of Agriculture will begin the implementation of a number of developmental and promotional activities such as:-
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
OWNERSHIP STRUCTURE
The Bank is wholly owned by the Federal Government of Nigeria with its shares held by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) (40%) and Federal Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) (60%). It is supervised by Federal Ministry of Agriculture. It has an Authorized Share Capital of N50 Billion (Fifty Billion Naira)
KEY MANDATE
The Banks key mandates are:
Provision of credit to support all activities in the Agricultural Value Chain
Provision of non-agricultural micro credit to the poor segment of the society comprising rural artisans, petty traders etc.
Capacity development for the promotion of co-operatives and agricultural information systems.
Provision of technical support and extension services
Boosting of opportunities for self-employment in the rural areas to stem rural-urban migration.
Inculcation of banking habits at the grass-roots of Nigerian society.
Credit Functions
Bank of Agriculture credit functions are activated at the level of direct Lending, on-lending, collaboration, and monitoring of credit.
This activity involves:
• Direct lending to qualified loan applicants engaged in agricultural and non-agricultural small businesses
• Providing credit facilities to issuing organizations through our on-lending service
• Monitoring the flow of ground level rural credit
Developmental Functions
Credit is a critical factor in development of agriculture, the rural areas, and small business in general. This is because it drives capital formation and technology upgrade.
Bank of Agriculture activity in this area involves the direct making of loans and strengthening of local micro finance banks, which deliver credit at the local community level.
We have embarked of various initiatives to strengthen the cooperative credit structure at local and state government level as well as rural micro finance banks. The effect is that adequate and timely credit is made available to the needy.
In order to reinforce the credit functions and to make credit more productive, Bank of Agriculture will begin the implementation of a number of developmental and promotional activities such as:-
- Work with cooperative groups at the states and local government level to prepare development action plans for themselves
- Enter into collaborative or on-lending MoU with state governments and cooperative associations and microfinance banks specifying their respective obligations to improve the affairs of the groups and banks within a stipulated timeframe
- Monitor implementation of development action plans of cooperative associations and micro finance banks and fulfilment of obligations under MoUs
- Provide financial assistance to cooperatives and micro finance banks for establishment of technical, monitoring and evaluations cells
- Provide Organisation development intervention (ODI) through reputable training institutes like Federal cooperative colleges, Universities of Agriculture, and departments of agriculture of various universities in Nigeria.
- Provide financial support for Federal Cooperative colleges and departments of cooperative studies in various universities and polytechnics
- Provide training for senior and middle level executives of local commercial bank branches, micro finance banks and cooperative associations
- Create awareness among the borrowers on ethics of repayment through local debt collectors and cooperative marshals that enforce timely repayment and prompt remittance of same to the lending institution
- Provide financial assistance to microfinance banks for building improve management information system, computerization of operations and development of human resources
PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
1) CREDIT SERVICES
i) MICRO LOANS SCHEME
The Bank provides credit to finance both micro agriculture and micro non-agricultural activities. This loan can be accessed by traders, artisans, arable/field crops farmers, fish farmers, agro-processors, livestock farmers, agricultural produce marketers, tree crop farmers as individuals, Cooperative groups, Self-help groups etc.
ii) SME/AGRIBUSINESS LOANS SCHEME
This Loan Scheme is for financing small, medium and large scale agribusinesses projects across the Agriculture Value Chain.
i) MICRO LOANS SCHEME
The Bank provides credit to finance both micro agriculture and micro non-agricultural activities. This loan can be accessed by traders, artisans, arable/field crops farmers, fish farmers, agro-processors, livestock farmers, agricultural produce marketers, tree crop farmers as individuals, Cooperative groups, Self-help groups etc.
ii) SME/AGRIBUSINESS LOANS SCHEME
This Loan Scheme is for financing small, medium and large scale agribusinesses projects across the Agriculture Value Chain.
iii) ON-LENDING LOAN SCHEME
This is a relationship through which the Bank partners with States, Local Governments, Agricultural Financing Agencies, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO), Community Based Organization (CBO), Self Help Groups (SHGs) etc. to reach to larger segment of Nigerians especially the underprivileged and rural poor with micro credit for enterprise development.
iv) BANK OF AGRICULTURE RURAL BUSINESS INITIATIVE (BOARBI)
The Bank of Agriculture as a Development Finance Institution committed to serving the rural sector with its existing network of over 136 operational outlets where it enjoys direct outreach to more than 350,000 microfinance clients, mused different options for strengthening its direct microfinance portfolio with a model that focuses on the market layers located below its current direct microfinance market by targeting households whose entry level loan requirements range from N 20,000-N30,000.
BoARBI model is aimed at meeting the forgoing desire by ensuring that sustainable microfinance services are available to households at the bottom layers of the rural microfinance market and aims at reaching around 1 million households in this market segment throughout Nigeria over a 10 year period. BoARBI will enable BOA to demonstrate its ability to attain high level self-sustainability and thus become the platform for offering scalable and sustainable financial services to the bottom layer of the rural microfinance market.
2) MOBILE BANKING SERVICES
BOA Greencash is a mobile payment service of the Bank. Its features include the following:
i) A standalone wallet linked to a mobile phone.
ii) A channel for the Bank customers to access bank services on the go.
iii) Can be used to make withdrawals, buy airtime, balances inquiries, send money, apply for loan, obtain mini bank statements and pay bills such as electricity, DSTV, water rates etc.
iv) Can be acquired by existing and new BOA customers as well as non-BOA customers.
v) Can be accessed via dial-up, SMS, Web and USSD.
This is a relationship through which the Bank partners with States, Local Governments, Agricultural Financing Agencies, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO), Community Based Organization (CBO), Self Help Groups (SHGs) etc. to reach to larger segment of Nigerians especially the underprivileged and rural poor with micro credit for enterprise development.
iv) BANK OF AGRICULTURE RURAL BUSINESS INITIATIVE (BOARBI)
The Bank of Agriculture as a Development Finance Institution committed to serving the rural sector with its existing network of over 136 operational outlets where it enjoys direct outreach to more than 350,000 microfinance clients, mused different options for strengthening its direct microfinance portfolio with a model that focuses on the market layers located below its current direct microfinance market by targeting households whose entry level loan requirements range from N 20,000-N30,000.
BoARBI model is aimed at meeting the forgoing desire by ensuring that sustainable microfinance services are available to households at the bottom layers of the rural microfinance market and aims at reaching around 1 million households in this market segment throughout Nigeria over a 10 year period. BoARBI will enable BOA to demonstrate its ability to attain high level self-sustainability and thus become the platform for offering scalable and sustainable financial services to the bottom layer of the rural microfinance market.
2) MOBILE BANKING SERVICES
BOA Greencash is a mobile payment service of the Bank. Its features include the following:
i) A standalone wallet linked to a mobile phone.
ii) A channel for the Bank customers to access bank services on the go.
iii) Can be used to make withdrawals, buy airtime, balances inquiries, send money, apply for loan, obtain mini bank statements and pay bills such as electricity, DSTV, water rates etc.
iv) Can be acquired by existing and new BOA customers as well as non-BOA customers.
v) Can be accessed via dial-up, SMS, Web and USSD.
Food and Rural Finance
BOA has an effective system of sustainable agricultural financing services that strengthens agriculture’s specific role in the economy to provide adequate food for Nigeria’s increasing population, supply adequate raw materials to a growing industrial sector, deliver a reliable source of employment, ensure generation of substantial foreign exchange earnings and provide a market for the products of the industrial sector.
In ensuring the provision of food, our target is to provide small farm holder loans to drive production of cash crops, staple foods, livestock and fisheries. The ultimate goal is to elevate agriculture to enterprise level as we build lives and communities, one life at a time. This approach to empowerment is also available to non-agricultural small and medium enterprises at all local communities in Nigeria.
Source: BOA website
BOA has an effective system of sustainable agricultural financing services that strengthens agriculture’s specific role in the economy to provide adequate food for Nigeria’s increasing population, supply adequate raw materials to a growing industrial sector, deliver a reliable source of employment, ensure generation of substantial foreign exchange earnings and provide a market for the products of the industrial sector.
In ensuring the provision of food, our target is to provide small farm holder loans to drive production of cash crops, staple foods, livestock and fisheries. The ultimate goal is to elevate agriculture to enterprise level as we build lives and communities, one life at a time. This approach to empowerment is also available to non-agricultural small and medium enterprises at all local communities in Nigeria.
Source: BOA website