THE ROLES OF BANKING INDUSTRY IN THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR OF NIGERIAN ECONOMY

THE ROLES OF BANKING INDUSTRY IN THE AGRICULTURAL SECTOR OF NIGERIAN ECONOMY
 
1.1       Background of the Study
The real sector is where goods and services are produced through the combined utilization of raw materials and other production factors such as labour, land and capital. It therefore forms the main driving force of any economy, and the engine of economic growth and development. The real sector comprises agriculture, industry, building and construction, and services. Agriculture can be further broken into crop production, livestock, forestry and fishing, while industry comprises crude petroleum & mineral gas, solid minerals and manufacturing.
Services are made up of transportation, communication, utilities, real estate & business service, education and health. Specifically, the sector is important for a lot of reasons. First, the sector produces and distributes the tangible goods and services required to satisfy aggregate demand in the economy. Its performance is a gauge or an indirect measure of the standard of living of the people. Second, the performance of the sector can be used to assess the effectiveness of macroeconomic policies. Government policies can only be adjudged successful if they impact positively on the production and distribution of goods and services and therefore raise the welfare of the citizenry. Third, a vibrant real sector, particularly the agricultural and manufacturing activities, create more linkages in the economy than any other sector and thus would reduce the economic pressures on the external sector. Fourth, the relevance of the real sector is also manifested in its capacity building role, as well as in its high employment and income generating potentials. In order for the real sector of the economy to optimize these potentials, however, it has to be supported by an efficient financial system.