The House of Representatives on Wednesday moved to secure a total waiver of outstanding COVID-19 survival loans owed by vulnerable households and micro-businesses, following the adoption of a motion under Matters of Urgent Public Importance.
The motion, sponsored by Rt. Hon. Saeed Musa Abdullahi (SMA), Member representing Bida/Gbako/Katcha Federal Constituency, called on the Federal Government to take immediate humanitarian action in light of worsening economic hardship and widespread inability of beneficiaries to repay the loans issued during the pandemic.
Abdullahi recalled that the Federal Government, through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and NIRSAL Microfinance Bank (NMFB), launched the COVID-19 Targeted Credit Facility (TCF) to cushion the economic shock of the global lockdown. A total of ₦419.42 billion was disbursed to 792,936 beneficiaries nationwide—comprising 674,972 households, 117,964 small businesses, and 330,128 women whose combined support amounted to ₦159.21 billion. The intervention helped create or sustain 1.58 million jobs at the height of the crisis.
However, the lawmaker expressed concern that as of September 2023, ₦261.07 billion—about 62 percent of the loans—remained unpaid. He cited CBN data from Q4 2024 and Q2 2025 showing sharply rising default rates attributed to inflation above 24 percent, food insecurity, weakened purchasing power, business closures, and declining household incomes.
Abdullahi noted that despite the initial high default figures, significant recoveries were made through automatic deductions from beneficiaries’ bank accounts between late 2023 and December 2025. This, he said, suggests that the actual outstanding balance may now be lower and potentially manageable for a structured waiver.
He emphasized that the TCF loans were designed as survival support rather than conventional commercial credits. Many beneficiaries, he said, used the funds for food, rent, school fees, and healthcare at the peak of the lockdown. “It is unrealistic to expect full repayment from households that have not recovered economically since the pandemic,” Abdullahi argued.
The lawmaker pointed to domestic and international precedents—including the Central Bank’s restructuring of the Anchor Borrowers Programme and pandemic-era loan forgiveness in the United States, Canada, Germany, South Africa, and India—where governments provided significant relief to distressed borrowers.
Warning that continued aggressive recoveries and automatic debits were worsening hardship for low-income Nigerians and threatening small businesses, Abdullahi commended the Federal Government, CBN, and NMFB for initiating what he described as one of the most impactful social protection programmes in recent history.
After deliberation, the House urged the Federal Government, through the CBN, NMFB, and relevant ministries, to immediately suspend all ongoing deductions, grant total waivers to vulnerable beneficiaries still burdened by the loans, and restructure SME-level obligations to safeguard jobs and prevent further business closures. It also mandated relevant House committees to engage implementing agencies to ensure transparent and equitable execution of the relief measures.
By Dodo Mustapha Alhaji
Senior Legislative Aide
December 10, 2025