President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the appointment of former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, as the Chairman of the Board of the newly established National Credit Guarantee Company Limited (NCGC), in a move aimed at boosting access to credit and supporting small businesses across Nigeria.
The announcement was made public on Thursday, May 29, 2025, by the presidency, as part of a series of fresh appointments into the leadership of the new federal initiative designed to stimulate economic growth through enhanced financial inclusion.
Dogara will chair the NCGC board, working alongside other newly appointed executives. Bonaventure Okhaimo was named the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, while Tinoula Aigwedo will serve as Executive Director in charge of Strategy and Operations. Others appointed include Ezekiel Oseni as Executive Director of Risk Management and Yeside Kazeem, who assumes the role of Independent Non-Executive Director.
The National Credit Guarantee Company is one of the federal government’s latest financial intervention instruments, created to de-risk lending and make credit more accessible, particularly to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), manufacturers, consumers, and larger corporate entities operating across the country.
President Tinubu also officially launched the NCGC with a government-backed seed fund of ₦100 billion. The administration believes the company will play a crucial role in bridging gaps in Nigeria’s credit ecosystem, encouraging lending institutions to offer more favorable terms by providing guarantees that reduce exposure to default risk.
The president noted that the move aligns with his administration’s broader economic reform agenda, which places a premium on private sector participation, financial inclusion, and empowering Nigerian entrepreneurs to scale up their operations.
Analysts have described the establishment of NCGC and the strategic appointments as a step in the right direction, particularly in light of the challenges facing small businesses, which often struggle to secure financing due to high-interest rates and lack of collateral.
With experienced leadership now in place, stakeholders are hopeful that the NCGC will deliver on its mandate and contribute meaningfully to the growth of Nigeria’s productive sectors in the months ahead.
