By Adedapo Adesanya
The federal government said about 1.6 million Nigerians have submitted applications for the Consumer Credit Scheme launched recently.
This is according to the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CREDICORP) when he appeared on Channels TV on Tuesday.
Last month, President Bola Tinubu launched the first phase of the Consumer Credit Scheme. The programme allows working citizens to access loans for important purchases.
Now, less than a month since the take-off of the scheme, the CREDICORP boss described the volume of applications received so far as overwhelming.
“It has been overwhelming. We didn’t expect the volume of applications or expressions of interest when we put out an EoI just like a week after I was appointed,” he said during the interview on Politics Today on Tuesday.
“As of today, we have about 1.6 million Nigerians who indicated interest, told us what they do, submitted their income information, and what they need credit for. We didn’t even expect that volume.
“So I think people have been listening to the utterances of the President and are quite expectant of this.”
The President appointed Mr Nwagba as CREDICORP boss on April 5 to spearhead the current administration’s drive to broaden consumer credit availability for working Nigerians interested.
About six weeks after his appointment, he said he was prepared to deliver the assignment.
“It is our job and we are prepared to take a systematic approach to ensure that we continue to go through the demography of Nigeria,” he added.
The Consumer Credit Scheme put together by Nigeria’s CreditCorp is in line with the Tinubu-led administration’s mandate to accelerate consumer credit access to 50 per cent of working Nigerians by 2030.
To achieve this, CrediCorp will fix the structural barriers to accessing consumer credit in Nigeria, and catalyze the market with capital, guarantees, and policy, according to a statement by the spokesman of the president, Mr Ajuri Ngelale.
President Tinubu believes every hardworking Nigerian should have access to social mobility, with consumer credit playing a pivotal role in achieving this vision.
According to CreditCorp, this scheme will help strengthen Nigeria’s credit reporting systems, ensuring every economically active citizen has a dependable credit score. “This score becomes personal equity they build, facilitating access to consumer credit”.
Also under this scheme, credit guarantees will be offered, and wholesale lending to financial institutions dedicated to broadening consumer credit access will be attained.
The scheme will also help promote responsible consumer credit “as a pathway to an improved quality of life, fostering a cultural shift towards growth and financial responsibility”.