Objectives Set for Nigeria's Microfinance Sector May Not Be Achieved
Udo, B.

The future of the microfinance sector seems bleak as only 18 million (about 21%) of Nigeria’s active adult population can access financial services to boost economic development. The Resident Country Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Dauda Toure, noted that about 64 million Nigerians (74% of total population), have never been banked, while only 4 million (5%), have previously owned a bank account. Toure said that though various stakeholders have keyed into the country’s microfinance landscape, very little impact has been recorded. He added that there are strong possibilities that set objectives of the microfinance sector may not be achieved by 2020.

Toure attributed the sector’s poor performance to the apparent lack of capacity, inadequate coordination and synergy, policy shortfalls, lack of detailed articulation of stakeholders’ roles and responsibilities in the various sector’s operations. UNDP is supporting the Central Bank of Nigeria under a 5-year national microfinance development strategy to reverse this trend.

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