NIRSAL Connect
George Odiachi has extensive experience in agricultural value chain production, integration, and services, currently holding a position at NIRSAL Connect since June 2017. Responsibilities include agricultural finance, food security, developmental project management, and sustainable agricultural systems. Prior to this role, George Odiachi worked at Forte Oil Nigeria from March 2014 to June 2017, focusing on depot operations and supply within the downstream sector. In this capacity, responsibilities included ensuring timely supplies of petroleum products and maintaining quality control standards. Additionally, George Odiachi served as an outreach officer at ZZ2 South Africa for a brief period in 2012, where the focus was on developing outreach strategies and researching food quality standards. Academic qualifications include a Master of Science in International Rural Development from the Royal Agricultural University and a Bachelor of Applied Science in Agricultural Extension and Rural Development from the Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta.
NIRSAL Connect
The Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing system for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) was launched in 2011 and incorporated in 2013 by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as a dynamic, holistic USD500 Million public-private initiative to catalyse the flow of finance and investments into fixed agricultural value chains. NIRSAL seeks to address the causes of low funding levels in the agriculture sector, including lack of understanding of the sector, perceived high risks, complex credit assessment processes/procedures, and high transaction costs.