The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), is disbursing the N50 billion COVID-19 targeted credit facility to support households and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises affected by the pandemic through the Integrated National Association of Banks Unified IT platform (NAMBUIT), deployed by Inlaks for NIRSAL Microfinance Bank.
The NIRSAL National MFB is an initiative of the CBN, in collaboration with other major stakeholders, like the Bankers Committee, Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL), and the Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST).
The purpose of the bank is to complement the efforts of the CBN towards addressing the needs of Nigerians at the bottom of the pyramid and deepen financial inclusion.
“This has been significant, especially in the context of developing economies, where many low-income households and micro-enterprises do not have ready access to financial services.”
The CBN had introduced the N50 billion Targeted Credit Facility as a stimulus package to support households and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The N50 billion intervention is financed from the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund.
The loan amount is determined based on the activity, cash flow and industry size of the beneficiary, subject to a maximum of N25 million for SMEs.
Households with verifiable evidence of livelihood adversely impacted by COVID-19 can access the loan to a maximum of N3 million.