Developing Nigeria’s livestock industry, our priority – Minister

The Minister of Livestock Development, Alhaji Idi Maiha, says Nigeria is prioritising the issue of food security and global competitiveness as well as transforming the country’s livestock industry.

Speaking at the 2025 Animal Science Meeting and Industry Exposition in Abuja on Tuesday, the minister said that transforming the sector in Nigeria would have positive impact across Africa and beyond.

Maiha said that to achieve the desired sector development and global competitiveness, the country must first transform its animal breeds while preserving their genetic heritage.

The minister said that, although challenges persist, Nigeria’s livestock industry has the potential to compete globally through collaborations, partnerships, and looking inward for creative solutions.

He also noted that Nigeria’s livestock sector, in spite of being considered a national asset valued at about 30 trillion Naira, contributes less than three per cent to the national GDP.

He, therefore, challenged animal scientists and other stakeholders in the sector to use the opportunity to “ask the tough questions and come up with the right answer”.

In his remarks, the President of the Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NAIS), Chief Simeon Ohwofa, said the institute has come of age in training and providing qualified professionals for the livestock industry.

He said that the institute currently has 2,936 Registered Animal Scientists (RAS) and 154 Associate Animal Scientists (AAS), 127 of whom are Fellows.

Ohwofa said that the 252 new RAS and five AAS who were inducted at the event had gone through full training and were adjudged as worthy in character and learning to represent the profession.

“We stand at a time when animal agriculture is central to our nation’s quest for nutritional security, economic resilience, employment generation, and agricultural transformation.

“With the establishment of the Ministry of Livestock Development, Nigeria has formally aligned with global best practices in recognising the livestock sector as a critical economic pillar,” he said.

Speaking on the theme, “Transforming Nigeria’s Livestock Sector for Economic Growth and Global Competitiveness”, keynote speaker, Dr Tunde Amole, said efforts should be focused on solutions to the sector’s challenges.

He said that, globally and across Africa, the livestock accounts for about 40 per cent of agricultural GDP, adding that the level of investment in the sector in Nigeria remains low.

He also pointed out that small and medium-sized livestock producers in Nigeria face many complex and interlinked constraints.

He mentioned low productivity due to a lack of access to knowledge, technologies, and input services, particularly on breeding, feeding, and animal health.

He also cited poor infrastructure limiting their access to services and to livestock markets; the effects of climate change; and dealing with the negative environmental impacts of intensive rural and peri-urban production systems.

He proposed “The Six Strategic Pillars for Transformation” in the sector: Productivity improvement; feed and fodder security; infrastructure, markets, and value chain; and financing, inclusion, and investment mobilisation.

Others are policy, governance, and data systems, and climate resilience, sustainability, and peacebuilding.

Amole said Nigeria needs to move from plans to implementation, and from policies to accountability.

“Nobody gets a solution by celebrating challenges. What we need now is to champion solutions to our challenges. That is why we needed the creation of the ministry to move forward,” he said.

Some of the inductees, who spoke with our correspondent said they were eager to contribute to the development of the nation’s livestock sector.

Dr Fisayo Ogunsola said: “I hope to collaborate, especially in my field, to find solutions to some of the challenges faced in animal science and livestock production.

“For instance, our breeds of animals should be able to compete in the global market.”

Mrs Nimota Motunrayo, an animal nutritionist from Lagos, said becoming a member of the institute would open further opportunities for her to compare notes with other animal nutritionists.

The Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NIAS) commenced operations in 2008 with the mandate to regulate all matters of animal husbandry in Nigeria, including professional practice and industry standards.