A Critical Appraisal Of Agricultural Financing In Nigeria A Case Study Of First Bank Of Nigeria Plc

📄 Project Abstract

When Nigeria attained political independence in 1960, agriculture was the dominant sector of the economy. It constituted over 65% of the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and provided the bulk of the foreign exchange earnings through the export of "Cash Crops". The sector catered adequately for nearly all the food requirements and raw material for industry in the country. Major expert crops included cocoa, groundnuts, cotton, palm oil and rubber. This situation, however, changed drastically at the beginning of the 1970s. Agricultural output started to decline rapidly at a time which not only coincided with the end of the Nigerian civil war but also with the period of oil boom and severe drought of 1972 - 1973., the overall agricultural situation deteriorated creating a wide gap between the supply and demand for food. To this end, no meaningful national economic development can take place without developing the agricultural sector. The bulk of the farmers expected to contribute to ...