CBN Adds $120M to COVID-19 Pandemic Relief Fund for Loans to MSMEs, Households in Nigeria

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) recently announced the addition of NGN 50 billion ($120 million) to its Targeted Credit Facility, a stimulus program for micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) as well as households affected by the pandemic.

The funding will be disbursed through NIRSAL Microfinance Bank, which is minority-owned by CBN’s Nigerian Incentive-based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL). Each retail loan will carry an annual interest rate of 9 percent, with a term of up to one year. The maximum loan size is NGN 25 million ($61,000) for MSMEs and NGN 3 million ($7,300) for households. The government previously allocated NGN 2.3 trillion ($6 billion) to pandemic relief efforts, including microfinance and other programs.