The livestock industry in Nigeria has suffered serious setback due to the inability of the government to produce a working national livestock development plan. The lingering crisis between herdsmen and farmers could be solved if proper plan is made for livestock. COLLINS NNABUIFE writes on the importance of having a framework to develop the livestock industry.
THE agricultural sector is one of the major driver of the Nigerian economy as it contributes over 30 per cent to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the country. It is also the largest employer of labour according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
This one time booming sector have suffered serious neglect over the years from successive governments due to the discovery of oil, as some infrastructures and policies linked to the sector were totally abandoned.
This negligence affected all the sub sectors in the agricultural sector, especially the livestock sector, where the grazing routes, herders settlement and ranches have been overtaken by development.
However, this led to the current crisis between farmers and pastoralist which has led to the death of thousands of Nigerians and destruction of properties worth billions of Naira across the country.
Therefore, the need to have a working National Livestock Development Plan became necessary to curb the lingering crisis between farmers and herders, and also to add value to dairy and beef production.
Meanwhile, In the face of constraints posed by disease and ecological problems, government policies have not been totally successful in introducing or encouraging the development of basic technological and institutional changes necessary to exploit the potential that exists for an efficient growth of the sector.
