Enhancing Output, Earnings of Small-scale Pastoral Farmers

Fadekemi Ajakaiye

With Nigeria’s population expected to reach 263 million by 2030, the InterAfrican Bureau for Animal Resources, alongside the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security , is working to advance the pastoral livestock farming sector in a sustainable and modern way that caters to both domestic needs and export opportunities. It was the spearpoint of the African Pastoral Markets Development (APMD) Platform Technical Pillar Planning and Stakeholders Engagement Workshop held in Abuja.

With the African Union (AU), estimating that the continent is home to 268 million pastoralists, considered more than a quarter of the total population; obviously, their contributions are particularly significant since they account for about 30% of agricultural gross domestic product (GDP) in many Sahel nations.

However, these pastoralists face considerable challenges, as ongoing droughts and rangeland degradation pose serious threats to their livelihoods and food security, while persistent conflicts and unfavorable policies hinder their ability to improve productivity and enhance their economic situations. As a result, agriculture specialists have emphasized the need for knowledge sharing, access to finance, agricultural inputs, and policies that are supportive of small-scale cattle farmers. These points were underlined at the African Pastoral Markets Development (APMD) Platform Technical Pillar Planning and Stakeholders Engagement Workshop conducted in Abuja.

Addressing the workshop, the Director, Animal Husbandry Services, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security Winnie Lai -Solarin emphasized that forging stronger partnerships is key to unlocking the potential of pastoral farming.

Her words: “Nigeria is a huge market. A lot of cattle are moved from other places into the

country by pastoralists in search of markets to sell their cows. Middlemen also buy cows from pastoralists and other livestock farmers.

She explained that pastoralism is a critical part of the nation’s food system. Yet it is overlooked and urgently requires more support. 

According to her, one of the key challenges in pastoral farming is demonstrating its value to the economy by supporting cattle farmers to adopt practices that can enhance both productivity and economic sustainability.

Though the pastoral farming sector makes an important contribution to rural livelihoods and food security, she indicated that it is facing major challenges, particularly from diseases. To modernize the industry, she noted that a collaborative approach was needed to boost the disease control capacity of the sector in the coming years.

She pointed out that there were other issues such as the inability of the country to domesticate ECOWAS protocols on pastoral farming like the government has done in other West African nations.

She added: “We also confront challenges of insecurity, as herders move their cattle and lack of infrastructure in the market. Standardization is a serious issue. I keep asking why is it difficult for us to sell our animals on weight? Why are we selling our animals by eye gauge? There are so many questions begging for answers which I believe the new Ministry of Livestock Development will address. Questions like why we don’t deploy the right transportation approach to move our animals. Should we continue to transport animals using trucks? We should have innovations around transporting livestock.”

According to her, the goal of the government is to drive the development of pastoral farming, in terms of scale, infrastructure, and processes on farms.

She expressed hope that APMD Platform will be midwife soon. She posited: “We are hoping it will take off in less than a year. This is because it is more like an emergency project, given the challenges we have. Nigeria, being a lighthouse, will generate a lot of activities. We have to show light to other countries.”

She provided a comprehensive overview of government initiatives, including feed and fodder projects, demonstrating a commitment to enhancing growth across the sector.

APMD Platform Project Coordinator, Prof Ahmed Elbeltagy, emphasized on the significance of the APMD initiative and its potential to improve market integration. He underscored the necessity of the APMD Platform, which is supported by funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates

Foundation. The initiative, he explained, is structured around three fundamental pillars: the integration of the private sector into pastoral markets, the development of data ecosystems to enhance pastoral livestock marketing chain, and the establishment of policy frameworks that eliminate obstacles related to livestock mobility and animal health.

According to Elbeltagy, these pillars are designed to provide pastoralists with essential resources to navigate environmental and economic challenges effectively. In his remarks while moderating one of the sessions, Professor of Animal Nutrition and Management/Director Quality Assurance, Nasarawa State University, Keffi, Nasarawa State, Maikano Ari, highlighted

the importance of training and educating smallholder farmers in pastoral farming stressing that partnerships and platforms are essential for knowledge sharing.

He voiced his dismay that Nigeria, which is renowned for its large livestock population that includes cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, and poultry, is encountering a notable supply shortfall. He highlighted the importance of prioritizing private sector initiatives and urged policymakers to create responsive policies that would facilitate greater value capture throughout the value chain.

He noted that pastoralists have the potential to enhance productivity if there is a concerted effort to develop reliable data systems.

The Programme Officer, National Association of Nigerian Traders NANTS, Solomon Obike, highlighted the significant opportunities that exist within pastoral markets, urging for increased support to help farmers develop business models that can realize their complete economic

potential. Indeed the workshop established a foundation for a cooperative effort toward sustainable and inclusive development of pastoral markets across Africa.

In her own contribution, the Cameroon Country Coordinator, United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service-International Programmes, Barrister Bertille Mayen e noted that it was essential to review all laws governing animal transactions acrossWest and Central Africa as livestock transportation is a field facing many national border restrictions.