Manufacturing credit crashes by N1.92tn as funding gaps persist
By Aboki Forex —
The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria has blamed the sharp drop in bank lending to the sector on the government's failure to deliver a promised N1 trillion stabilisation fund.
Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria shows commercial bank credit to manufacturers fell by N1.92 trillion from N8.53 trillion in December 2024 to N6.61 trillion in December 2025. That is a 22.5 percent year-on-year contraction.
MAN Director General Segun Ajayi-Kadir described the development as disturbing. He said the sector recorded one of the steepest credit contractions among major sectors of the economy.
Manufacturing now trails behind oil and gas, which attracted N10.59 trillion in credit, and finance, which received N9.24 trillion.
Ajayi-Kadir attributed the decline to prohibitive borrowing costs, risk-averse lending by banks, and the continued delay in implementing the N1 trillion Manufacturing Stabilisation Fund. The fund was included in the Federal Government's Accelerated Stabilisation and Advancement Plan since 2024.
“For two years, we have awaited this fund to ameliorate the credit crunch in the sector and to cushion the impact of the twin shocks of currency devaluation and astronomical energy costs. There appears to be no visible effort at delivering on that score,” he said.
He added that the delay has left manufacturers to operate in a high-interest-rate environment without promised support. Factories are scaling down operations or exiting the market entirely.