CBN Appoints New Leadership for NIRSAL, Unveils Full Board Members List

The CBN announced Babajide Arowosafe as the newly appointed Managing Director and CEO of NIRSAL. The board appointments include:

• Muhammad Sani Abdullahi, Deputy Governor for Economic Policy at the CBN, as Chairman
• Mallam Ado Wanka, Non-Executive Director
• Dr. Daphne Dafinone, Non-Executive Director
• Mr. Hamidu Sa’ad, Non-Executive Director
• Dr. Bankole Allibay, Non-Executive Director
• Hon. Shehu Balarabe, Non-Executive Director

The CEO and board members were formally inaugurated during the 21st Board of Directors meeting held on Tuesday.

This development follows the CBN’s decision in August to terminate the appointments of all executive directors at NIRSAL as part of a comprehensive restructuring process led by CBN Governor Olayemi Cardoso. The executive directors affected included former Managing Director and CEO Abbas Umar Masanawa, Executive Director of Operations Kennedy Nwaruh, and Executive Director of Technical Services Olatunde Akande.

An official from NIRSAL, speaking to The Nation, mentioned that remaining staff are awaiting further details regarding the dismissals. In the termination letters, the CBN cited an “organizational and human capital restructuring” as the primary reason for the move.

This restructuring aligns with the CBN’s broader efforts to overhaul its structure and operations under Governor Cardoso’s leadership. NIRSAL, established in 2013 as a non-bank financial institution, is wholly owned by the CBN and is focused on promoting agricultural finance and investment in Nigeria.