The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has reported a significant increase in banks’ lending to the agricultural sector, which rose by 22.75% in the first quarter of 2025.

According to the apex bank’s Q1 2025 economic report released over the weekend, loans and credit facilities from Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and other financial institutions to agriculture climbed to N3.17 trillion, compared to N2.58 trillion in the same period of 2024.

The figure also represents an 11% increase (N314.16 billion) when compared to the N2.85 trillion recorded in Q4 2024.

CBN data further shows that while overall credit to the economy fell slightly by 0.20% in Q1 2025—reflecting the regulator’s tight monetary policy to manage inflation—agriculture bucked the trend, recording higher lending.

“Credit to the agriculture sector rose by 11.01% to N3.17 trillion, increasing its share of total credit from 4.82% to 5.36%. The increase reflected preparation for wet season farming across the country,” the report said.

In contrast, credit to the industry sector dropped by nearly 6% in Q4 2024, while the services sector remained the largest consumer of credit, accounting for over 55% of total lending.

Despite the rise in agricultural loans, analysts note that the sector’s contribution to Nigeria’s GDP is still much smaller than that of services. According to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), agriculture contributed 23.33% to GDP in Q1 2025, compared to 57.50% from the services sector.

The sustained growth in lending highlights the sector’s importance for food security and rural jobs, but experts stress that more investment and policy support are needed to boost agriculture’s overall impact on the economy.