FG Scales Up Livestock Reforms, Targets Disease Surveillance, Waste-to-Wealth at COP31
Chiemelie Eze in Antalya, Türkiye
The Federal Government has commenced nationwide implementation of reforms in the livestock sector, with emphasis on disease surveillance, improved animal genetics, climate-smart production and conversion of animal waste into clean energy and organic fertiliser.
Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Mukhtar Maiha, disclosed this on the sidelines of the ongoing United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP31) in Antalya, Türkiye, where he outlined the government’s efforts to modernise the livestock value chain and improve its resilience to climate change.
Maiha said the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development had moved beyond pilot interventions, with more than 20 operational models identified to address infrastructure and productivity gaps across the sector.
He listed some of the interventions to include the establishment of cold storage facilities, pasture development, semen replication and genetic improvement aimed at improving the quality of livestock while reducing the number of animals required for higher productivity.
“We are talking about establishing cold storage facilities all over the country, alongside pasture development, semen replication, and genetic improvement,” he said.
“By bringing in generative materials, we can reduce the sheer number of animals out there while significantly improving their quality in terms of rearing for milk, as well as building local capacity.”
The minister identified disease surveillance and vaccine localisation as major components of the reform programme, stressing the need to ensure that vaccines deployed locally correspond with the viral strains circulating in the country.
He warned that failure to align vaccination programmes with prevailing disease strains could expose livestock farmers to costly outbreaks and undermine efforts to improve animal productivity.
On environmental sustainability, Maiha said the ministry was promoting a waste-to-wealth initiative and rehabilitating grazing reserves, with six reserves selected as flagship locations for climate-smart and nature-based interventions.
He explained that digital weather stations had been installed in up to six locations across the country to provide real-time meteorological information accessible remotely by stakeholders.
The ministry is also deploying biodigesters in abattoirs to convert animal waste into biogas and organic fertiliser, reducing environmental pollution while creating economic value from materials that would otherwise be discarded.
“When people are struggling to put food on the table, you have to ask: what do you do with waste? We are turning waste to wealth,” Maiha said.
“This has been demonstrated, and we are moving from pilot schemes to general upscaling all over the place.”
The initiatives are also being implemented through the Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support (L-PRES) project, supported by the World Bank, which is working with the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development to strengthen climate resilience and productivity in the sector.
Also speaking, National Project Coordinator of L-PRES, Sanusi Abubakar, said the project was using COP31 to showcase Nigeria’s practical interventions and explore partnerships for financing, technology and capacity development.
According to the project’s presentation at the conference, its climate interventions include solar-powered vaccine cold chains, biodigesters, veterinary services, climate information systems and pasture restoration.
The solar-powered cold chain initiative is designed to support reliable vaccine storage and maintain vaccine quality, while the biodigester facilities at the Yola abattoir and Maiduguri leather factory demonstrate opportunities for converting organic waste into usable biogas.
The project also highlighted the role of veterinary hospitals, medicines and preventive healthcare in improving animal health, strengthening livestock production and protecting food security.
Abubakar said climate change posed risks to feed availability, water resources, animal health and the livelihoods of livestock producers, making climate adaptation an important part of the country’s livestock development strategy.
He noted that the project’s participation at COP31 was intended to connect Nigeria’s ongoing interventions with international climate cooperation, particularly in the areas of finance, technology transfer and technical capacity.
Among its priorities are securing investment for resilient livestock infrastructure, exploring technology partnerships for vaccine cold chains and biodigesters, and exchanging knowledge on climate adaptation, animal health and sustainable resource management.
Meanwhile, Maiha said the government was also working to ensure that livestock development interventions were driven by stakeholder participation rather than the traditional approach of distributing inputs without securing beneficiaries’ commitment.
He said the ministry had consulted about 24 pastoralist organisations across the country to build consensus and encourage communities to take ownership of the interventions.
“We are not just input distributors dropping off products or gifts,” he said.
“We have had hard conversations with about 24 pastoral organisations all over the country and shared these solutions with them. They are organically linked to the project, they are part of the solutions, and after consultations, they take ownership.
“For us, it is about three core components: dialogue, consensus, and implementation.”
The government said the coordinated approach would help consolidate ongoing livestock projects, strengthen grassroots participation and support the transition towards a more productive, climate-resilient livestock sector.
