Alhaji Idris Ajimobi, Senior Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Livestock Development, has reminded Nigerians that the nation’s livestock reforms are on course.
Ajimobi, speaking to newsmen in Ibadan on Sunday, however, called for unity, more stakeholder engagement and public sensitisation for a successful implementation.
He noted that 50 per cent of the Livestock Ministry’s job was to tackle, by significantly reducing the recurring farmers-herders’ crises across the country.
According to Ajimobi, the son of the late Gov. Abiola Ajimobi of Oyo State, clashes between farmers and herders stem from the lack of clean water and food for livestock.
Ajimobi said the ministry was now involving all stakeholders, having identified past failures of exclusion and poor coordination.
He revealed that Nigeria has over hundred grazing reserves with only the recently launched reserve in Niger functioning.
Ajimobi said that while some of the reserves had become uninhabitable, hence requiring major intervention, the government was interested in reviving them all.
He said that discussions were ongoing with local and foreign partners to revive at least three grazing reserves in the next 18 months.
Ajimobi said that the ministry would also promote local dairy and beef production to reduce importation, while targeting a pack of milk and an egg per day for every child.
He said that Nigerians must be educated to explore the economic opportunities in livestock beyond meat and milk, lamenting the waste of the money-making opportunities in cow by-products.
Ajimobi, acknowledging the current economic pains, urged Nigerians to be patient with the Tinubu-led administration as the gains of ongoing reforms manifest.
He said the ongoing reforms, once set upon a solid foundation, would lead to a fairer system that would benefit many rather than a few privileged ones.
The president’s aide, however, said that farmers must form cooperatives to increase impact, adding that unity among farmers would make them unstoppable.
Ajimobi expressed the desire to serve the people of Oyo State and Nigeria in the future, but remained focused on delivering impactful results in his current role under Tinubu.
“I still have a burning desire to serve the people of Oyo State and Nigeria at large, should the opportunity arise.
“However, for now, I remain fully committed to my current assignment and to delivering a thriving livestock sector better than what we have today,” he said.
