N220bn Fund: CBN, IFC To Create Moveable Collateral For Women olajohnson— March 4, 2014 As part of efforts to make credit more accessible for women, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), an arm of the World Bank say they are working together to create non-physical collateral for women. Speaking at the International Sustainability Forum in Lagos yesterday, CBN deputy governor operations, Kingsely Moghalu, who represented the Acting Governor of the CBN, Dr. Sarah Alade, said women have been excluded from access to credit due to the culture in many societies that do not allow them to own land. Explaining that this had formed one of the basis for the N220 billion Micro Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund (MSMEDF), Moghalu noted that the fund which has 60 per cent dedicated to women “Is the beginning. We now want to look at why women have problems accessing credit. “We will of course have collateral requirement of one sort or the other of business plan and repayment plan but as I mentioned we are working with the IFC to create what we call the movable collateral, not just the traditional collateral. We are going to be innovative in our approach to collateral because of course we cannot lend without a clear assurance that the money will be repayed.” On sustainable principles, Moghalu noted that the apex bank had encouraged the adoption of sustainable banking in the country “because global business case for practices from a wide range of countries show that environmental and social responsibility support business success and long term economic growth.” According to IFC’s sustainability report, effectively managing environmental and social opportunities and risks together help financial service providers differentiate themselves from competitors, improve their reputation among key customers and stakeholders and generate goodwill and support from stakeholders through increased transparency. Also speaking at the forum, the IFC country manager in Nigeria, Solomon Adegbie-Quaynor said “sustainability is central to inclusive economic growth and aligns with IFC’s strategy for long term economic development.”
Posted on: Tue, 04 Mar 2014 06:22:50 +0000
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