Bank to extend additional funding to smallholder maize farmers

UNITY Bank Plc has said it will provide additional funding to no fewer than 120,000 smallholder maize farmers in Nigeria in the 2021 wet farming season. 
 
Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mrs Tomi Somefun, stated this while delivering a goodwill message at the unveiling of the first national maize pyramid and flag-off of wet season farming programmes held in Katsina at the weekend. 
 
Represented by Head, Agribusiness of the bank, Mrs Patricia Chinwe Ahunanya, Somefun said the additional funding for 2021 wet season farming would be in furtherance to the bank’s commitment towards supporting maize farmers in the country. 
 
She stated that the strategic partnership with the Maize Association of Nigeria commenced in 2019 with the financing of about 37,182 smallholder farmers, with the bank increasing its financing tally to 70,604 smallholder farmers in 2020. 
 
She said: “Unity Bank is fully committed to its partnership with MAAN and this commitment will ensure the attainment of FGN/CBN target to meeting self-sufficiency in Maize production through the Association.”