Chairman, House Committee on Livestock, Hon. Wale Raji on Wednesday, expressed grave concern over the country’s inability to meet domestic consumption of livestock, leading to huge capital flight on importation.

Hon. Raji who expressed the concern during the inaugural meeting of the Committee held in Abuja, however pledged the resolve of the Committee to address the concerns.

He said: “You would recall that on the 2nd of October 2024 at plenary the Speaker announced the creation of the House Committee on Livestock Development, consequent upon the creation of The Federal Ministry of Livestock Development by Mr. President, as the first step towards the implementation of the recommendation of the Presidential Committee on Livestock Development.

“The creation of the Ministry of Livestock Development as rightly recognized by Mr. President at a recent stakeholders meeting was long overdue. It is unfortunate that the livestock sector has not received the due attention by successive administration despite its huge potential and contribution to our economy.

“The annual production in the livestock sector is estimated at 563 million chickens, 58 million cattle, 124 million goats, 60 million sheep and 16 million pigs. While this put Nigeria as the leading livestock producer in West Africa, we are far from meeting our consumption needs resulting in expenditure of huge amounts of foreign exchange on importation of livestock products that could be easily produced in the country.

“Honorable Colleagues, our nation stands at the precipice of extraordinary opportunity. The livestock sector is ripe for transformation, offering pathways to food security, economic diversification, and wealth creation.

“As we begin our work, it is our responsibility and privilege to be part of the pioneering effort at repositioning this sector for a future of prosperity and sustainability.

“Our mandate, as approved by the Speaker, encompasses the general oversight of the Ministry responsible for Livestock Development. This includes its departments, parastatals, agencies, colleges, and research institutes, as detailed in the reports of the Presidential Livestock Reforms Implementation Committee co-chaired by Mr. President.We have a wide scope to ensure the effective and impactful development of this sector, and it is crucial that we execute our duties with diligence, transparency, and commitment to excellence.

The Departments, and Institutions covered by our mandate are: Technical Departments: Diary Animal Husbandry Services, Beef Animal Husbandry Services, Sheep and Goats Animal Husbandry Services, Poultry Husbandry Development, Swine and Micro Livestock Husbandry Services, Ranch and Pastoral Resources Development.

Others are: Animal Feed and Fodder Development, Animal Breed Improvement and Genetic Resources Management, Livestock Commodity Value Chain and Entrepreneurship Development, Livestock Technology, Innovation, Extension and Advisory Services, Animal Health Services, Veterinary Epidemiology and Risk Assessment, Veterinary Public Health and Food Safety, Veterinary Sanitary Mandate and Allied Products, Veterinary Quality Assurance and Certification.

The Committee was also mandated to oversight Parastatals, Agencies and Colleges, namely: Veterinary Council of Nigeria (VCN), Nigeria Institute of Animal Science (NIAS), Colleges of Animal Health and Husbandry TechnologyNational Livestock Training Centre (NLTC), College of Animal Sciences.

In the same vein, the Committee is to oversight Federal Research Institutes, namely: National Animal Production Research Institute (NAPRI), Beef and Dairy Production Research InstituteSheep and Goats Production Research Institute, Poultry Production Research Institute, Swine and Micro livestock Production Research Institute, Feed and Grassland Research Institute, National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI), National Animal Diseases Vaccines and Biological Production, National Animal Diseases Central Diagnostic Laboratory, Genetic Resources Management Research Institute, and Nigerian Institute of Trypanosomiasis Research.

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