The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria has called for an urgent update to Nigeria’s livestock census, citing outdated data as a challenge to effective grazing reserve management and sustainable livestock farming.
The association’s national secretary, Aliyu Gotomo, told The PUNCH in a phone interview that having accurate data prevents overgrazing and enhances pastoralist livelihoods. His comments followed the Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Maiha’s announcement of government plans to digitise all grazing reserves and routes throughout the country.
Gotomo stated, “One major thing (for the Federal Government) to consider is the livestock census. We have to identify the population of pastoralists in each of the reserves for proper management to avoid environmental degradation from overgrazing.
“When you have a grazing reserve that is supposed to manage about 30 herds of cattle, if 100 herds of cattle are there, there is no way you can achieve anything. Proper livestock data is required. The pastoralists that inhabit particular grazing reserves have to be known.”
Nigeria’s history of livestock data collection has been inconsistent. The country participated in the World Census of Agriculture in the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. However, a planned census in 2003/2004 was abandoned due to lack of funding.
The National Agricultural Sample Census was later revived in 2006, with a phased implementation. The last major livestock population data (2016/2017) was published in 2017 under the Agricultural Performance Survey, which reported 19.8 million cattle and 44.8 million sheep in 2016, among others.
A separate Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development report for the same year estimated 18.4 million cattle, 43.4 million sheep, 76 million goats, and 180 million poultry.
The most recent NASC Report of 2022 marked a shift in data collection methodology. Instead of a direct livestock count, the report surveyed households involved in livestock farming.
It found that 48 per cent of agricultural households engaged in livestock farming, with 16 per cent practising cattle rearing. However, this survey covered only 767 out of Nigeria’s 774 local government areas due to security challenges in parts of Imo and Borno States.
MACBAN’s president argued that relying on old livestock population estimates is inadequate for effective policymaking. “I believe the last (cattle) census we use is outdated. We can still be forecasting, but it is not correct,” Gotomo lamented.
He also emphasised the need for proper infrastructure within grazing reserves, including watering points, pasture development systems, and veterinary centres, to encourage pastoralists to settle in designated areas.
The call for an updated livestock census aligns with broader discussions on digitalising grazing reserves.
The PUNCH had reported that MACBAN endorsed digital mapping of reserves, with Gotomo quipping, “If you digitalise it, it means there is an easy way of accessing the facility. What is there? Who is managing it?”
Further, he noted that digitalisation could aid security, reduce encroachment by farmers, and improve resource management.
Other stakeholders, including the president of the Commercial Dairy Ranchers Association of Nigeria, Muhammadu Abubakar, also highlighted, in separate interviews with The PUNCH, the importance of government intervention to help livestock development.
Abubakar acknowledged that the current Minister of Livestock Development has a background in animal husbandry and understands the sector’s challenges. However, he expressed concern over the budgetary allocation, stating, “If you’re talking about grazing reserves in 36 states, the provision in the budget is about N70bn per grazing reserve. I don’t know what infrastructure N70bn can provide.”
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry Agriculture and Allied Group Chairman, Tunde Banjoko, suggested that feed and fodder production along grazing routes could help mitigate farmer-herder conflicts. “If they will also factor in the production of feeds and fodder as they mentioned so that along those routes there is provision for the cows and they are not going into other people’s farms to eat their food and damage their farm, that could also make it successful,” Banjoko said.
