Inspired by the latest World Bank Ease of Doing Business Index, which rated the nation 145th from a previous position of 169th, out of 190 countries, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Monday said it is poised to further enhance the ranking by using the National Collateral Registry (NCR) to open more business opportunities.
Nothing the nation’s meteoric rise, while speaking in Abuja, Acting Director, Corporate Communications, Isaac Okorafor, assured that the NCR would soon enter the next phase of its mandate of easing business practices in the country.
Efforts, he assured, are being put into strengthening the NCR by the CBN to play its role, while further helping to improve Nigeria’s current ranking of 6th on the “Getting Access to Credit” index.
On the role of the apex bank in ensuring a robust financial sector, he said the reduction of information asymmetry had assisted lenders in making sound decisions on credit solutions and ultimately improved access to credit by Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs).
A statement by the apex bank recalled that since its inception in 2016, the NCR has acted as a catalyst to credit improvement by significantly improving the credit culture in the Nigerian banking system. The NCR equally made it possible for MSMEs to leverage significant portion of their moveable assets as collateral for loans from the financial institutions to grow their businesses.
The activities of the NCR have proved effective in complementing the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme (ABP) initiative of the CBN, as it has been embraced by many more states of the Federation as a tool for job creation and food sufficiency.