The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revealed that Banks’ gross credit to the Nigerian economy rose to N23.5tn in November this year.
The apex bank, in a new report, revealed that it strengthened the Loan-to-Deposit ratio policy which resulted in a significant rise in loans provided by financial institutions.
“Total gross credit rose by over 21.1 percent over the past year, from N19.4tn to N23.5tn,” it said.
The CBN said it created a N50bn target credit facility through Nirsal Microfinance Bank, against which N363.5bn had been disbursed to over 767,000 Nigerian households and small businesses.
It added that it mobilised key stakeholders in the Nigerian economy under the Private Sector Coalition Against COVID-19 team that raised N39.64bn to support the fight against the scourge.
The report noted that the funds were used for the provision of palliatives in the form of essential food items to 1.7 million households, an equivalent of eight million Nigerians; and improving awareness in rural awareness on the COVID-19 virus and capacity building for community health workers”.
The CBN said it had also created a N1tn facility in loans to boost local manufacturing and production across critical sectors, of which 53 major manufacturing projects, 21 agriculture-related projects, and 13 service projects were being funded from the facility.
It added that it provided N100bn intervention fund for pharmaceutical companies and healthcare practitioners to expand and strengthen the capacity of the nation’s healthcare institutions.
The CBN said, “We have increased this fund to N200bn to accommodate more players in the healthcare sector, such as phytomedicine practitioners and manufacturers of medical devices and vaccines.
“Our primary focus is to create a hub where medical officers can have access to diagnostic equipment to carry out quality medical services at an affordable price for Nigerians.”
 has revealed that Banks’ gross credit to the Nigerian economy rose to N23.5tn in November this year.){kind=link}