True to its promise at inauguration few days ago, to move with the speed of light in ensuring that the people of Rivers State have a greater feel of the impact of the Rivers State Microfinance Agency, the board has swung into action, determined to ensure financial inclusion of the people described as, “the poorest of the poor.”
Chairman of the board of the agency, Professor Adolphus Toby, told The Atlantic Bell shortly after the inaugural meeting of the board held at the agency’s headquarters in Port Harcourt, on Wednesday, September 3, 2025, that one of the topmost priorities of the new board is to ensure that the activities of the agency and its subsidiary, the RIMA Growth Pathway Microfinance Bank, is felt by the people, especially in all the 23 LGAs of the state.
“The law establishing this agency mandates us to use the instrument of microfinance to enhance financial inclusion and ensure wealth creation at the grassroots. For a long time, this has not been done effectively. This board will leverage on its subsidiary, which is a statewide microfinance bank to establish branches in all the LGAs,” Prof. Toby stated.
Toby, a professor of Banking and Corporate Finance, said that by the triangular nature of the issue of microfinance, with RIMA at the centre, the board would adopt the mode of outreach, financial sustainability and welfare impact assessment and analysis of clients, to guide its operations.
“The issue of microfinance has to do with a triangle. At the centre is RIMA. That triangle is made up of outreach. We are going to build our outreach capabilities to the poorest of the poor. The other part of the triangle is financial sustainability. We are going to ensure that this agency and its subsidiary are financially sustainable. Our oversight function will be carried out regularly and diligently to ensure the bank is on track. The third part of the triangle is the welfare impact assessment of the recipients of our loans,” the chairman stated.
The Atlantic Bell learnt that the board has approved adhoc and statutory committees in line with sound corporate governance rules to tackle very critical issues facing the agency and its subsidiary, the bank. This was sequel to the board’s familiarisation visit to the RLMA Headquarters and the RIMA Griwth Pathway Microfinance Bank, which exposed glaring situations that needed urgent attention.
Prof. Toby expressed confidence that the board would excel in its functions since all the members were appointed based on their professional competencies and assured that the working relationship between the board and management of the agency which is defined in the Rivers State Microfinance Agency LawNo.6 of 2008, would be defined by professionalism.
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“The board under our watch shall exercise its independence as provided in the law. Similarly, the relationship between the board and its subsidiary is also clearly defined in the law. In the exercise of its oversight function over the RIMA Growth Pathway Microfinance Bank, we shall also endeavour to be guided by the provisions of BOFIA (2020), CBN Microfinance Regulatory Framework (2012) and the CBN Code of Corporate Governance for Microfinance Banks (2019),” he added.
Prof. Toby assured that the board of the agency under his watch will pursue a strategy that is sustainable, prudent, and development-oriented, stating that the time of spending government finances recklessly was over.
