The National Institute of Credit Administration (NICA) has congratulated Osun Governor elect, Sen. Ademola Adeleke, urging him to make credit access and financial inclusion key pillars of his administration’s economic policy.
NICA Registrar and Chief Executive Officer,Prof. Chris Onalo, made the call in a statement issued in Lagos on Friday, congratulating Adeleke on his emergence as governor-elect.
Onalo said sustainable economic growth could not be achieved without the disciplined and inclusive flow of credit to productive sectors.
He said Osun had significant human capital, entrepreneurial energy and agricultural potential, but required deliberate policies to convert these resources into productivity.
“Growth is not financed by budget alone. It is financed when the trader in Oja-Oba can access working capital, when the agro-processor in Iwo can finance equipment, and
when the tech graduate in Ife can fund a scalable idea.
“Credit is what moves an economy from subsistence to scale,” he said.
He urged the incoming administration to develop policies that would de risk lending, strengthen credit bureaus and promote financial literacy.
According to the him, such measures will create jobs, expand the state’s tax base and reduce poverty.
He also called for a state wide framework promoting responsible borrowing, ethical lending and credit education.
Onalo said NICA was ready to partner with the Osun Government through technical advisory, executive capacity building and public credit education programmes.
He added that NICA became a chartered professional body under Act No. 26 of 2022 and was recognised as the statutory body for regulating the credit management profession in Nigeria.
He explained that the Federal Government in February, signed an MoU with NICA and five other professional bodies.
He said the programme was to implement a programme providing free credit and financial inclusion training to 10 million Nigerians, with priority given to women and youths.
Onalo urged Adeleke to use his mandate to expand citizens’ access to capital and economic opportunities.
He said the success of the incoming administration should ultimately be measured by tangible improvements in productivity and prosperity across the state. (NAN)
