NIRSAL has facilitated over N70 billion in commercial credit for agribusinesses across Nigeria as of Q3 2025.
The agency said the milestone marks its strongest annual performance since inception.
The Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) has announced that it has facilitated over N70 billion in commercial credit for agribusinesses across the country as of the third quarter of 2025.
In a statement on Wednesday, the organization described the milestone as its strongest annual performance since inception, signaling a major step forward in restoring access to credit for Nigeria’s agricultural sector.
Established in 2013 through a collaboration between the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, and the Bankers’ Committee, NIRSAL was created to make agricultural financing more accessible and less risky for banks and investors.
The new injection of capital comes at a time when lending to agriculture had been on the decline, dropping from 6.18 per cent of total bank lending in 2022 to 4.82 per cent in 2024. That trend has now reversed, with agriculture’s share of lending rising to 5.33 per cent by May 2025, driven largely by NIRSAL’s interventions.
According to the statement, 32 per cent of the total facilitated funds were channeled into value-added commodity exports, boosting foreign exchange earnings.
NIRSAL’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Sa’ad Hamidu, said the achievement demonstrated that agricultural finance can be sustainable and commercially viable with the right structures in place.
“Seventy billion naira may look small compared to the country’s total financing needs, but its impact is significant,” Hamidu said. “It shows that with adequate risk mitigation, technical support, and the right mix of funding, agriculture can be productive, competitive, and profitable.”
He expressed optimism that NIRSAL would reach its N150 billion target for 2025, noting that the final quarter of the year, when most agro-dealers and merchants seek credit for storage, input supply, and offtake, usually records the highest loan activity.
NIRSAL explained that this record performance, representing nearly a quarter of its total N270 billion facilitated since inception, was achieved through a revamped strategy by its new board and management team. The approach includes value-chain modelling, direct technical support for agribusinesses and banks, and stronger risk-sharing frameworks to restore lender confidence.
The institution said fresh funding has now been channeled into key value chains such as grains, cocoa, shea, and livestock, while it continues to support the training of financial institutions and agricultural entrepreneurs. Over 1,100 bank staff and 450 value-chain actors have been trained on agricultural finance, feedlot management, commodity export, and climate-related investments.
To further strengthen the sector, NIRSAL announced plans to launch a digital platform known as the NIRSAL LandBank Portal, which will connect agricultural stakeholders, from researchers to producers and markets, to provide data-driven insights for investors and policymakers. The platform will also help identify opportunities, minimize risks, and enhance project development.
NIRSAL added that it is working closely with the Rural Electrification Agency on a partnership to provide off-grid power to processing and production hubs in rural communities. The collaboration, it said, would support climate finance initiatives and strengthen resilience across agricultural value chains, contributing to Nigeria’s goal of building a $1 trillion economy.
