The Federal Government has announced the launch of the National Livestock Breed Improvement Programme (NALBIP), urging that it will reduce herdsmen/farmer clashes and also boost dairy cattle production in Nigeria.
This was disclosed by Mrs Eno Olotu, Deputy Director, Information, in the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, in a statement on Monday in Abuja after the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Alhaji Muhammad Nanono, inaugurated the scheme in Kano.
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The Minister said that NALBIP is one of the several programmes in place to improve Nigeria’s livestock production value chain, adding that the genetic pool of indigenous animals especially diary animals would boost Nigeria’s diary production.
He added that the scheme “will improve the livelihood of the pastoral communities and other livestock farmers and support the ministry in addressing the challenges in the livestock value chain particularly, the incessant herder/farmers Crop conflict.”
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What you should know
Nigeria’s dairy industry is cultivated on a subsistent basis and characterised by low productivity. Despite the abundance of natural resources required for milk production, Nigeria’s milk production estimated at 600,000 MT accounts for only 13% of West African production.