Business

HARDSHIP: CBN Provides N100bn Fertilisers To Boost Food Production

Published

2 years ago

March 13, 2024

The Central Bank of Nigeria, on Wednesday, handed over N100bn worth of fertilisers to the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security to boost food production across the country.

CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, handed over the 2.15 million bags of fertilisers to the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, at the headquarters of the FMAFS in Abuja.

In his address at the handing over ceremony, Cardoso said one of the primary mandates of CBN was to maintain price stability, stressing that the cost of food was a crucial component of inflation.

This, according to the CBN boss, is because a substantial portion of household expenditure in Nigeria is allocated towards food and non-alcoholic beverages.

“This reinforces the critical need to address food inflation as a pivotal aspect of managing overall headline inflation rates,” Cardoso stated.

He explained that while the CBN had been implementing several measures to curb inflation in the short term, the inflationary pressures had remained predominantly driven by escalating food prices.

He, however, pointed out that while transient inflationary pressures might persist, the government anticipates substantial alleviation by the third quarter of 2024.

“This is precisely why we convene today to strengthen our collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture with a shared objective of mitigating the surge in food prices.

“In alignment with our strategic shift towards focusing on our fundamental mandate, the CBN has veered away from direct quasi-fiscal interventions, and transitioned towards leveraging conventional monetary policy tools for executing monetary policies.

“In this light, we aim to extend our support and foster closer ties with ministries, departments and agencies that bear the mandate and expertise to undertake these critical initiatives,” Cardoso stated.

He further noted that “consequently, we aim to enhance our partnership with the Ministry of Agriculture, thereby bolstering your endeavours to enhance food productivity and security, and ultimately, curbing food inflation and fortifying our pursuit of price stability.

“In pursuit of these goals, we are delighted to announce the allocation of 2.15 million bags of fertiliser valued at over N100bn, which we are humbly handing over to the Ministry of Agriculture.”

Before Cardoso took over as CBN governor in 2023, the apex bank intervenes in the fertiliser market in Nigeria primarily by facilitating access to credit through programmes like the Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme and the Commercial Agricultural Credit Scheme.

Through these programmes, the CBN encourages banks to lend to farmers at concessionary rates. This helps farmers to purchase fertilisers and other inputs.

The apex bank also supports farmers through indirect subsidy by making credit more affordable, as its interventions can lead to effectively lower fertiliser prices for farmers.

On his part, Kyari described the cost of fertiliser as the major input in any agricultural production, and lauded the apex bank for providing the commodity.

Business

Naira Continues Gain Against US Dollar As Nigeria’s Foreign Reserves Climb To $45.57bn

Published

7 hours ago

January 6, 2026

Editor

The Naira appreciated further against the United States Dollar at the official foreign exchange market, beginning the week on a good note.

Central Bank of Nigeria data showed that the Naira strengthened on Monday to N1,429.31 per dollar, up from N1,430.85 exchanged on Friday, 2 January 2026.

This means that the Naira gained N1.56 against the dollar on Monday when compared to N1,430.85 last week Friday.

At the black market, the Naira dropped by N5 to N1480 per dollar on Monday, down from N1475 traded Friday.

The development comes as the country’s external reserves rose to $45.57 billion as of Friday last week.

Business

NNPCL Reduces Fuel Price Again

Published

22 hours ago

January 5, 2026

Editor

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has again reduced its premium motor spirit price.

In Abuja, on Monday morning, it was gathered that NNPCL retail outlets have reduced their fuel price to N815 per liter, down from N835.

This means that the NNPCL filling stations cut their price by N20.

The fresh price has been implemented at NNPCL filling stations in Wuse Zone 6 and 4 Abuja, Keffi-Abuja Road, and Kubwa Expressway.

An NNPCL filling station attendant, who preferred anonymity, told DAILY POST that the new price was implemented on Sunday evening.

However, the N815 per liter is N79 higher than the N739 per liter sold at Dangote Refinery’s backed MRS filling stations nationwide.

DAILY POST recalls that NNPCL on December 19, 2025, cut its price of petrol by N80 to N835 amid a price war among players in the country’s oil downstream sector triggered by Dangote Refinery’s gantry price reduction to N699 per liter.

Business

NNPCL Announces Restoration Of Escravos-Lagos Pipeline

Published

1 week ago

December 30, 2025

Editor

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has announced the complete restoration of the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System (ELPS) in Warri, Delta State, following the recent explosion on the asset.

The chief corporate communications officer (CCCO) of the nation’s oil company, Andy Odeh, in a statement, said that the pipeline is fully operational, reiterating the company’s resilience and commitment to energy security.

“NNPC Limited is pleased to announce the successful restoration of the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System (ELPS) in Warri, Delta State.

“Following the unexpected explosion on December 10, 2025, we immediately activated our emergency response, deployed coordinated containment measures, and worked tirelessly with multidisciplinary teams to ensure the damaged section was repaired, pressure-tested, and safely recommissioned.

“Today, the pipeline is fully operational, reaffirming our resilience and commitment to energy security. This achievement was made possible through the unwavering support of our host communities, the guidance of regulators, the vigilance of security agencies, and the dedication of our partners and staff.

“Together, we turned a challenging moment into a success story, restoring operations in record time while upholding the highest standards of safety and environmental stewardship.

“As we move forward, NNPC Limited remains steadfast in its pledge to protect our environment, safeguard our communities, and maintain the integrity and reliability of our assets. Thank you for your trust as we continue to power progress for Nigeria and beyond,” the statement read.