CBN Fails to Recover N629 Billion Anchor Borrowers’ Loan – Audit Report
Nigeria’s latest Auditor-General’s report has uncovered that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) failed to recover N629.04 billion disbursed under its Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP), raising fresh concerns about transparency, internal controls, and the overall performance of one of the country’s largest agricultural interventions.
The findings, contained in the Auditor-General’s review of the CBN’s 2022 financial statements, were published in September and recently submitted to the National Assembly for scrutiny.
The report highlighted significant gaps in loan recovery mechanisms, documentation processes, and oversight within the ABP.
Introduced in 2015, the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme was designed to provide credit to smallholder farmers to boost local production and reduce Nigeria’s dependence on imported food.
However, the audit shows that a substantial portion of the loans remains unrecovered years after disbursement, despite multiple repayment cycles having elapsed.
Auditors noted that the CBN did not provide adequate explanations for the outstanding balance, nor did it show evidence of a structured recovery plan for beneficiaries who defaulted.
The report also questioned whether some benefiting groups met eligibility criteria or were properly monitored during the loan cycle.
Analysts say the revelations could intensify calls for a comprehensive probe into intervention programmes run by the apex bank, particularly those implemented during previous administrations that ballooned to trillions of naira with limited public accountability.
Lawmakers are expected to review the audit findings in the coming weeks, with several committees already signalling interest in investigating the management of the ABP and its impact on Nigeria’s food security strategy.
The CBN has yet to issue an official response to the Auditor-General’s observations, though senior government officials have repeatedly stated that efforts are underway to improve loan recovery across legacy intervention schemes.
The report adds to a growing national conversation about the need to reform how public funds are disbursed, monitored and recovered through government-backed intervention programmes.
