On Thursday, the Chairman of the sub-committee on herders/farmers crisis, NEC and Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi presented the National Livestock Transformation Plan (NLTP) 2019-2028 at the National Executive Council Meeting.
Umahi, had said while addressing newsmen that the plan is not targeted only on cows but a wholistic strategy to address animal husbandry.
According to him, the plan has six pillars through which it aims to transform the livestock production system in Nigeria along market oriented value chain while ensuring an atmosphere of peace and justice.
“The six key pillars include: economic develop (investment), conflict resolution, justice and peace, humanitarian relief and early recovery (that is to IDPs), human capital development and cross-cutting issues such as gender, youth, research and information and strategic communication.”
The committee proposed implementation guidelines to guide federal government and states.
N100 billion budget was proposed to support the project. Federal government is to contribute 80 percent in grant to support the project while states will contribute land, project implementation structure, personnel and 20 percent cost of the project.
Yes, the plan will require states to contribute land and 20 percent cost of the project, this has been the main reason why RUGA was rejected in the first place so the big question is, is NLTP merely a change of name with same plan and agenda with RUGA?
In July, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, had in an interview stated that that there is no difference between RUGA settlements and the National Livestock Transformation Plan being supervised by Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo’s office.
“It is just a matter of semantics. These herders who roam the entire country and overrun farmlands cause disaffection and fight and the government want to stop this.
“So, we want to settle them in one place, provide the entire infrastructure they need. As a matter of fact, markets will come to this RUGA settlement or ranches. There will be establishment of meat processors, the utilisation of by-products including sanitary wares that will be developed from hoofs and horns. There will be a lot of business and money from this. It is not confined to Fulani. It is a business open to all Nigerians.” Shehu had said
Already, 13 states have signed up the on the NLTP, they are “The states are Adamawa, Benue, Kaduna, Plateau, Nasarawa, Taraba, Zamfara, Katsina, Kano, Kogi, Kwara, Ondo, and Edo.
While Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo had stated that Federal Government will not impose on any state government regarding its land, one is curious to ask how the NLTP plan will address the lingering farmers/herders clashes in states that did not subscribe to the plan. Will this stop the migration of herders and their businesses to the states?
The clashes between herders and farmers in Nigeria is hard hitting than applying ‘cosmetic’ solutions, the constraints of land availability and land ownership in a multi-ethnic country like Nigeria is very sensitive and the NLTP plan, while it awaits President Muhammadu Buhari’s approval, must factor in the inalienable rights of original inhabitants to have a say on their. Notable is the fact that their refusal stands incontrovertibly.
Going forward, researches in animal rearing and food production have thrown up a lot of issues for proper consideration. Questions like why make animals roam when it will affect the quality of their beef has been repeatedly looked away from, and even keeping these animals under favourable conditions before they are killed has been equally advocated by animal rights activists.
The query about creating a plan for livestock owners alone has been largely unanswered. If indeed this dwells upon crisis between herders and farmers, why is provision being made to cater to the needs of herders as it were, while farmers who repeatedly get affected as well do not find some specific reprieve in this scheme? It is a fact, that what is source for the goose is source for the gander, without which arising inequality will result in further unrest.
It therefore implies, that all necessary questions that will neutralize any form of suspicion has to be answered, while making the rule of law and the will of the people hold sway would go a long way in mending our fractured togetherness.