Tinubu Receives Livestock Committee’s Report

…as panel calls for integrated solutions to pastoral issues

President Bola Tinubu has received the report of the Livestock Reform Committee presented by its Co-Chairman, Prof. Attahiru Jega.

New Telegraph reports that the Committee has the President as the Chairman.

Jega, who briefed newsmen after submitting the report to the President, on Thursday called for integrated solutions to pastoral challenges affecting the country.

According to him, any solution that must be developed now to address pastoralism in Nigeria has to be a combination of both ranching and open grazing.

He said this should subsist while the Federal government promotes long term objective of Intensive livestock production.

Jega who submitted the 152-page report alongside three other members of the committee, explained that the committee was promoting long term objective in order to achieve an intensive livestock production.

He added that the panel proposed  policies and frameworks that would accommodate both ranching and open grazing for a period of time while increasing awareness against extensive nature of pastoralism.

“You cannot wake up tomorrow and all you have is ranching because you already have quite a large chunk of population in traditional pastoral activities, what do you do with them? It’s not either nor but any solution that has to be developed now has to be a combination of both

“Why we are promoting long term objective is that we now have live stock production but you know you cannot wake one day and have that, you have to develop policies and frameworks that can accommodate both for a period of time.,” he said.

He further suggested time frame of policy realisation of pastoralism so as to achieve incremental positive changes in the livestock sector.

“I think some of the challenges we have heard in the past has  led to the politicisation of the issue is that we are quick to develop a single frame.of mind as regards to what the solution is.

“But in a complicated situation that we have to really think in terms of incremental positive changes, we must to really have time frame within when these will be achieved.”

Recall that the President on July 9th 2024, inaugurated the Presidential Committee on Implementation of Livestock Reforms to address obstacles to agricultural productivity and open up new opportunities which benefit farmers, herders, processors, and distributors in the livestock-farming value chain.