The Minister of Livestock Development, Alhaji Idi Mukhtar Maiha, says it is the responsibility of Nigeria and Nigerians to develop and transform the country’s livestock industry for food security and global competitiveness.
Speaking at the 2025 Animal Science Meeting and Industry Exposition in Abuja on Tuesday, the minister said that if Nigeria could transform the sector, its positive impact would be felt 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.
He said addressing this and other challenges led to the establishment of the ministry by President Bola Tinubu.
“There were advocacies previously for the ministry to be created, but there were pushbacks until this president, who probably had nothing to do with animals than seeing meat on his plate.
“So many people are excited about the creation of the ministry because anything that proves successful in Nigeria will positively impact Africa,” he said.
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, despite being considered a national asset valued at about 30 trillion naira, currently 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: yes, we can do it”.
Earlier in his opening remarks, the President of the Nigerian Institute of Animal Science (NAIS), Chief Simeon Ohwofa, said the institute had come of age in training and was providing highly qualified professionals for the livestock industry.
He also said the institute currently had 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 sufficiently worthy in character and learning to represent the profession.
“Today marks a new chapter not only in the lives of our inductees but in the continued evolution of the livestock sector in Nigeria,” he added.
“It is a chapter defined by innovation, guided by regulation, and powered by a renewed national vision.
“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, globally and across Africa, the livestock sector accounts for about 40 per cent of agricultural GDP, and that, despite the importance of the sector, the level of investment in livestock 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 therefore proposed “The Six Strategic Pillars for Transformation” in the livestock sector, which are: 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.
One of the highlights of the event was the award of Honorary Fellowship of NIAS to the minister and the Special Adviser to the President on Livestock Reforms Implementation, Prof Attahiru Jega, by the NIAS Board of Fellows, presented by the board’s Chairman, Prof. Suleiman Bogoro.
President of the Animal Science Association of Nigeria (ASAN), Mr Raymond Isiandinso, said the fellowship was in recognition of Maiha and Jega’s commendable efforts to transform the livestock industry.
Some of the inductees who spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria expressed happiness and said they were eager to contribute to the development of Nigeria’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 officially becoming a member of the institute will 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.
