The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has approved a new Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) as well as board members for the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agriculture Lending (NIRSAL).
This was confirmed in a statement signed by Head, Corporate Communications of NIRSAL Plc, Jude Nnadozie.
The CBN approved the appointment of Babajide Arowosafe as the new Managing Director and CEO of NIRSAL.
The board members are:
Mr. Muhammad Sani Abdullahi, Deputy Governor, Economic Policy, Central Bank of Nigeria, as Chairman
Mallam Ado Wanka, Non-Executive Director
Dr. Daphne Dafinone, Non-Executive Director
Mr. Hamidu Sa’ad, Non-Executive Director
Dr. Bankole Allibay, Non-Executive Director
Hon. Shehu Balarabe, Non-Executive Director
The CEO and board members have been inaugurated at an event which took place at the 21st meeting of the Board of Directors on Tuesday.
It would be recalled that the CBN, in August, terminated the appointments of all executive directors at the Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agriculture Lending (NIRSAL), as part of an ongoing restructuring process at the apex bank.
The decision, approved by CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso, represents the latest in a series of significant layoffs since he assumed office last year.
The executive directors affected by the decision include Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Abbas Umar Masanawa, Executive Director of Operations Kennedy Nwaruh, and Executive Director of Technical Services Olatunde Akande.
A NIRSAL official, who confirmed the development to TheNation, noted that the remaining staff are awaiting further clarification on the circumstances surrounding the dismissals.
In the termination letters issued to the affected directors, the CBN cited a “major organisational and human capital restructuring process” as the reason for the dismissals.
The move is part of broader efforts to reshape the CBN’s structure and operations under Governor Cardoso’s leadership.
NIRSAL, a non-bank financial institution wholly owned by the CBN, was established in 2013 with the goal of stimulating agricultural finance and investments in Nigeria.
