I will restructure BOA as biggest bank in Africa

By Noah Ebije, Kaduna

The new Managing Director of the Bank of Agriculture (BOA), Mr Ayo Sotinrin, has vowed to transform the institution into Africa’s largest bank by leveraging technology and boosting value chains for cocoa, ginger, and other cash crops.

He shared this vision during his takeover from predecessor Alwan Ali Hassan at BOA’s headquarters in Kaduna on Tuesday, April 8.

Sotinrin thanked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his appointment, calling the task ahead daunting yet achievable. “We have a sector that is in need of a lot of restructuring,” he said. “We need to create a new food system, starting with the seed system, mechanise both small- and large-scale farming, and improve inputs like homegrown fertiliser while expanding land use.” He stressed the role of data and technology.

“Nothing can start without proper baseline data. Big data is going to be our friend to link farmers to farms, deploy capital effectively, and track growth.”

He outlined a modern approach. “The sort of banking we want to do now will move away from non-performing loans,” Sotinrin said. “We’ll have proper controls in our new monitoring and evaluation systems, extension services, and collateral management to ensure funds are used as intended.”

He urged large-scale farmers to partner with BOA, adding, “We are going to recapitalise. With the help of the President and the Minister of Agriculture, we’ll make bold steps in production, processing, and earning foreign exchange through value chains like ginger and cocoa.”

Sotinrin set ambitious goals. “Our plan is to become the biggest bank in Nigeria and Africa,” he said. “We will digitise all our branches across the country, do very smart banking, and deploy capital in an intelligent, efficient way. We’ll optimise our assets, change the agricultural landscape, and make Nigeria the food basket of Africa.” He also emphasised financial inclusion, targeting rural youth farmers, and called on his team to embrace teamwork and technology adoption.

In his handover speech, outgoing MD Alwan Ali Hassan revealed that since taking over in May 2020, BOA recovered N8 billion, mostly from the Anchor Borrowers Programme, with N5 billion remitted to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). He noted the bank had begun deploying solar energy to its 110 branches to cut costs, funded by recoveries and income. Hassan wished Sotinrin success and urged staff to support him fully.