The Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation, NAIC, has come under fresh scrutiny as the House of Representatives intensifies its probe into the N1.12 trillion Anchor Borrowers Programme, summoning key stakeholders over insurance coverage and alleged funding diversion linked to the scheme.
The House Committee on Nutrition and Food Security, led by Chike Okafor, is investigating the roles of the Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation, Leadway Insurance and Veritas Kapital Insurance, alongside a statement by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, on the disbursement framework and participation of insurance firms.
At an investigative hearing in Abuja, NAIC representative, Dayo Babaronti, told the lawmakers that the corporation provided insurance cover for 207,514 farmers valued at N109 billion, representing about 12 per cent of the total scheme.
He explained that the Central Bank of Nigeria engaged additional insurers outside the original framework that designated NAIC as sole insurer, with Leadway Insurance and Veritas Kapital Insurance absent at the hearing.
Hon. Chike Okafor said the committee would reconvene with NAIC after reviewing its late submission, noting that complaints from farmers and commodity associations necessitated deeper scrutiny.
He added that preliminary findings suggest poor stakeholder inclusion in the design of the intervention programmes contributed to their weak performance, as the House moved to uncover lapses in the implementation of federal government agricultural funding initiatives.
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