By Nathaniel Zacchaeus, Abuja
The Senate yesterday constituted a seven-member committee to review an uneven disbursement of N483bn to small and medium-scale enterprises by the Development Bank of Nigeria
The funds were disbursed to the SMEs through microfinance banks.
The Senate raised a seven-member ad-hoc committee to investigate the matter and report back to the Senate in four weeks for further legislative action.
The panel would be chaired by Senator David Umahi while senators Babangida Oseni, Ali Ndume, Sani Musa, Tokunbo Abiru, Ipalibo Banigo, and Chizoba Chukwu, would serve as members.
The red chamber decided after an extensive debate of a motion by Senator Ali Ndume (Borno South) which was supported by 64 other senators.
The motion was titled, “The need to holistically investigate the disbursement of loans by Development Bank of Nigeria, NIRSAL, and related Banks to micro, small, and medium scale enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria from 2015 to date.”
The motion, earlier moved by Ndume and three others was investigated by an ad-hoc committee in the 9th Senate and a report was submitted by the panel headed by Senator Sani Musa (Niger East).
Deliberating on the motion at plenary yesterday, the Senate noted the huge disparity and un-even distribution of half a billion naira to states in the six geopolitical zones and the states in the country in 2021 by the Development Bank of Nigeria.
Ndume said that the Bank’s Annual Integrated Statutory Report 2021 obtained by him on 13th July 2022, from its website showed that the bank disbursed loans worth N483, 000, 000, 000 out of which only 11 per cent went to the 19 states of northern Nigeria, while 47 per cent went to Lagos State alone.
He also noted that the 11 per cent of the loan that went to the entire northern totals about N53.1bn while the 47 per cent that went to Lagos State alone totals about N227bn.
Ndume further added that the South-West accessed the lion’s share which was 57 per cent of the total loan, which was estimated to be about N274, 740, 000,000 only.
He expressed worry that the South-South Zone accessed 17 per cent, (N81, 940, 000, 000); Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and the North-Central Zone, 11per cent, ($53, 020, 000, 000) only; the South-East Zone, nine per cent, (N43, 380, 000, 000); the North-West has 5 per cent, (N24, 100, 000, 000) and the North-East accessed only one per cent, N4.8bn
He said the DBN existed to alleviate financing constraints being faced by Micro, Small, and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSMEs) in Nigeria by providing finance, partial credit guarantees, and technical assistance to eligible financial intermediaries on a market-conforming and fully financially sustainable basis.
The Senator Ahmad Lawan-led 9th Senate set up an ad-hoc Committee to probe Ndume’s claims and the panel chaired by Senator Sani Musa (Niger East), investigated the development and submitted its report which was debated, passed, and sent to the executive for implementation.
Former minister of Finance, budget, and national planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, had urged the development bank to relax its criteria which had made it difficult for other geopolitical zones to access the loans.
