No one is in doubt that livestock production plays a crucial role in Nigeria’s agricultural economy. It contributes significantly to food security, employment and income.
Most of Nigeria’s livestock, especially cattle comes from Northern Nigeria and the system of livestock management practiced for decades is the open grazing system where herders migrate from North to south in search of pastures for their cattle. It is unfortunate that this prevalent practice of open grazing has led to increasing conflicts, environmental degradation and inefficiencies in livestock management. More recently than before , this open grazing system has opened the floodgate to violent crimes like kidnapping, banditry and outright slaughtering of whole communities, sometimes just for criminal pleasure. The predominant middle belt region of Benue and plateau have been at the mercy of these herder bandits , some of which wield sophisticated weapons that overwhelm the Nigerian security apparatus.
It has become difficult to know the real herders from purely criminal bandits. Our highways in the East and in the south are no longer safe as passengers are routinely kidnapped and some slaughtered. This situation once prompted Senator Ned Nwoko to propose a bill aiming to allow Nigerians to legally bear arms for self defence . Senator believed that the possibility of resistance from armed citizens would discourage criminals from attacking. Some civil society groups have objected to the firearms legalization bill on the grounds that Nigeria already has an estimated 6.2 million illegal firearms- far exceeding the military arsenal and warned that legalizing civilian arms would worsen insecurity.
It is in the light of the above that made Senator Ned Nwoko, the Senator representing the Delta North senatorial district to further propose a ranching bill which will result in the establishment of ranching in all the local government areas of the country. it is a bill designed to protect lives, deter the frequent clashes between herders and farmers and ultimately make the livestock market more competitive globally.
Senator Nwoko in proposing the new ranching bill has argued that open grazing is primitive , anachronistic and not in sync with modern realities. Some states in Nigeria have enacted anti – open grazing laws . Some of them are Ekiti, Benue, Taraba,Abia, Oyó, Ondo, Osun, Bayelsa, Rivers , Akwa Ibom, Lagos and Enugu. In spite of an effort by over a dozen states , primarily in the southern and central regions to pass anti – grazing legislations , these laws have failed to address recurring farmer- herder conflicts. Benue and Plateau states have reported horrendous accounts of whole annihilation of innocent citizens in villages like Yelewata , Dauda, Bawa , Logo, Apa, Otukpo and other multiple communities, with tales of deaths, destructions and widespread displacement of communities.
Senator Nwoko’s ranching bill is bold, holistic and far reaching . The bill aims to separate herders from farmers in a way to restore peace in rural communities and modernize the livestock industry in Nigeria. It creates room for private sector participation and partnerships as practiced in more developed countries of the world like the United states,Brazil, Australia, Argentina , Mexico and Uruguay to mention just a few.
Significantly , the ranching bill of Senator Ned Nwoko has received validation from the Nigerian current Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa who also called for the establishment of ranches in Nigeria as the only sustainable solution to the endless farmer – herder clashes. The Chief of staff was vociferous in his admonition that ” the future of livestock management in Nigeria lies in ranching “
As Senator Ned Nwoko continues to push the ranching bill through the Senate, this is the time for more support for the actualization of the bill into law to end the vicious cycle of waste , massacres and senseless herder – farmer conflicts, which is evidently affecting the Nigerian economy, affecting flow of investments into the country and gradually reducing Nigeria into a terrorist enclave.
If Nigeria wants to be ready to guarantee the safety of its citizens then we must all support this bold and decisive ranching bill being proposed by Senator Ned Nwoko, who as chairman of the equally important Senate Ad- hoc committee on oil theft has shown boldness and resilience to tackle headlong some of the biggest challenges to the attainment of a healthy economy for the Nigerian state.
Fred Akpewe
Senior media Analyst
