More than 22,000 Nigerians have entered the formal credit system for the first time through loans backed by the National Credit Guarantee Company (NCGC), President Bola Tinubu has disclosed.
Tinubu said the development was part of the impact recorded by the NCGC in its first year of operation, as the government seeks to ease access to credit for individuals and businesses previously shut out of formal lending because of inadequate collateral or limited credit histories.
The President made the disclosure in a post on Monday marking the first anniversary of the NCGC, revealing that the company had issued ₦21.59 billion in loan guarantees which enabled participating financial institutions to extend ₦46.95 billion in credit to 67,512 borrowers.
The beneficiaries, according to him, are spread across 25 states and the Federal Capital Territory, with women accounting for 11,374 of the borrowers.
Tinubu said 33.5 per cent of the beneficiaries were first-time formal borrowers, meaning the scheme had provided thousands of Nigerians with an opportunity to establish credit records through successful loan repayments.
The NCGC currently partners 19 financial institutions, comprising 13 commercial banks, three microfinance banks and three development finance institutions.
The President said the guarantee scheme had unlocked approximately ₦2.17 in credit for every ₦1 guaranteed, indicating how public guarantees were being used to encourage financial institutions to lend to borrowers who might otherwise struggle to meet conventional lending requirements.
He added that businesses supported by NCGC-backed credit were estimated to account for 661,291 direct and indirect jobs.
According to Tinubu, the credit facilities would enable traders to restock, manufacturers to expand production and businesses to take on larger orders, thereby creating additional opportunities for employment and economic activity.
The figures were reported by INDEPENDENT.
Tinubu said the NCGC was part of the Federal Government’s broader drive to develop a credit-based economy, alongside initiatives and institutions such as CREDICORP, NELFUND, the Bank of Industry and the Development Bank of Nigeria.
“Credit gives Nigerians the means to build on” the opportunities created by the government’s reforms, he said.
He added that the government would continue to widen access to credit until more households and businesses across the country could benefit from the opportunities created by its economic policies.
