Victor Ezeja
…As The Apex Bank Releases List Of 28 Beneficiary Firms.
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The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has spent N23.202 billion in funding 28 private companies that benefited from the bank’s “100 for 100 policy on production and productivity (PPP) scheme.
This was gleaned from the document containing the list of the beneficiary companies released on Wednesday.
The document titled, “100 For 100 Approved Applications As At January 28, 2022,” has names of 28 companies, banks they use, amount applied for, sectors they operate in, purpose of the loan and locations of the companies.
The document shows that the companies which applied for the loan cut across sectors like Manufacturing (14), Agriculture (12) and healthcare (2).
The CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele had on Monday during flag-off of the 100 for 100 PPP in Abuja, disclosed that 28 companies have benefited from the initiative.
Emefiele stated that the beneficiaries were private firms that have a project to fund and were able to apply for as much as N5 billion under the scheme.
READ ALSO: 28 Companies Benefitted In First Cycle Of ‘100 For 100’ Policy – Emefiele
According Emefiele, the selected companies met the stipulated requirements and went through rigorous process of screening.
“Following due process on the application received, I am pleased to inform you that, unfortunately, only 28 companies with projects that have articulated proposals have been selected for funding.
“The projects valued at N23.202 billion comprises those within the manufacturing sector, agricultural and health sector.
“These projects are to create over 20,000 direct and indirect jobs across all sectors of the economy as well as generate close to $125.8 billion foreign exchange.
“It is important to note that five of the projects are greenfield projects trying to explore the huge opportunities in key sectors of our economy.
“Next cycle for the submission of the 100 PPP starts from Feb 1 to April 30. I want investors to take advantage of the investment under the PPP.”
Emefiele further said that the programmes initiated by the government would go a long way to reduce reliance on importation, productivity and development.
“We are interested in increasing jobs, reducing reliance on imports and effectively growing our economy.
“Our mission through these initiatives will be to prioritise companies who showcase verifiable progress in our import substitution and job creation drive.
“Soon we will unveil the new foreign exchange bidding that is market-driven, support companies that give priorities to our local products and job creation initiative in Nigeria.
“I’ll like to urge beneficiaries to judiciously use the funds for the purpose to which they have indicated as there are independent monitors and evaluators on the regular basis to see the progress of the projects,” the CBN boss had said.
The first cycle of the 100 for 100 POP was launched in November 2021 as a way of encouraging domestic production of goods and services rather than depending heavily on imports which affects the country’s economy.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with seven years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Master's degree in Mass Communication.
