The Federal Government has been called upon to strengthen the existing National Animal Identification and Traceability (NAIT) system to address insecurity and market standards for livestock products.
The call was in a communique signed by the co-chairman of the Presidential Livestock Reforms Implementation Committee (PLRIC), Professor Attahiru Jega, at the end of a two-day stakeholders’ consultative workshop on Live Stock Reforms in Nigeria.
The Presidential Livestock Reforms Implementation Committee (PLRIC) organized the workshop to create an opportunity for engagement with stakeholders along the various livestock value chains and elicit their input in the livestock reform process.
The event, declared open by President Bola Tinubu, attracted over 400 stakeholders among them were governors, ministers and traditional rulers who also visited exhibition stands.
The workshop which took place from October 24 to 25, 2024 at the State House Banquet Hall, Abuja held technical sessions in which participants were split into two thematic areas which include Reforms in the Ruminant Animal Sub-sector; Reforms in the Dairy Sub-Sector, Reforms in the Poultry Sub-Sector; reforms in the Swine Sub-Sector, Reforms in the MicroLivestock Sub-sector.
Others are reforms in the Anima Health Sub-sector; Reforms in the Livestock Extension and Advisory Services Sub-sector; Reforms in the Animal Feed, Pasture and Range Management Sub-sector; Reforms in Breed Improvement and Animal Genetic Resources Management; Dispute Resolution and PeaceBuilding Mechanisms and Climate Actions in the Livestock Sector.
The workshop also had a plenary session after a group discussion where stakeholders presented key constraints and recommendations.
The communique also called for the supply of grains, forage, pasture and animal feeds which has been identified as a critical constraint across livestock production enterprises, exacerbated by widespread smuggling across borders.
Participants at the event noted that to check widespread smuggling across the border, stricter measures should be implemented as well as regulate importation to stabilize supply.
The communique recommended “a comprehensive national feed security programme,” and “strengthen existing animal health infrastructure in line with the Global One-Health Initiative.”
Part of the communique reads “at the take-off of the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development (FMLD), a Department of Livestock Extension and Innovation should be domiciled in the ministry to cater to specialized livestock extension needs with a policy framework to guide the development of a robust livestock extension service delivery system
“There is the need to develop a targeted policy framework to address climate change impacts on livestock production and integrate climate-smart practices across all livestock sub-sectors.
“The Federal Ministry of Livestock Development should provide a framework for effective management of conflicts between farmers and herders at state, LGA, District and community levels with clear financing mechanisms for its operations.
“There is the need to have robust livestock data and genetic resource conservation infrastructure (gene banks, genetic stock improvement etc) for a sustainable livestock sector.”
The stakeholders also suggested that the management of waste generated from the production process of the livestock value chains should be adequately planned for its conversion to wealth e.g. dungs to manure and biogas, feather hydrolysis for protein production, blood for blood meal production for poultry to mention but a few.
“FMLD should note the importance of livestock mechanization across its value chains and properly domicile its functions within the Ministry.
“The establishment of National Agricultural Development Fund (NADF) should be explored for funding animal agriculture value chain and allied activities
“Insurance coverage for livestock investment is very important and should be implemented.
“A rapid response team and an expert working group should be established for the livestock sector to work with other relevant agencies in times of disaster.”
