Experts back FG, say ranching policy critical to address insecurity, land grabbing

Amid growing concerns over rural instability and its impact on Nigeria’s agricultural productivity, experts have thrown their weight behind the Federal Government’s proposed ranching policy, describing it as a critical and long-overdue strategy to curb spiralling insecurity and halt illegal land grabbing across the country.

The policy, which aims to transition Nigeria’s livestock sector from traditional nomadic pastoralism to ranching, comes at a critical time for the country, as the open grazing model continues to fuel several clashes between herders and farmers, leading to displacement of households and disrupting food supply chains.

Announcing tbe proposal recently, Idi Maiha, Minister of Livestock Development, said the ranching model is aimed at expanding economic opportunities, particularly for young people and women, while improving productivity across the livestock value chain.

According to him, the initiative will promote structured participation in ranch operations and related enterprises, encourage sustainable livestock management practices, and serve as a catalyst for job creation and rural economic growth.

Speaking in support of the plan, experts who spoke with BusinessDay said that the policy is a welcome development as it represents a decisive measure to end the perennial clashes between farmers and herders, which continue to threaten Nigeria’s food security and national stability.

They, however, warned that for any new livestock policy to succeed where previous initiatives like RUGA failed, it must have provisions for adequate security of host communities and it must be implemented locally across all states without relocating herders or seizing communal lands.

Speaking on the economic and security implications of open grazing, Nnabuife Chideraa, an Abuja-based agricultural sector analyst, noted that the country’s current livestock management system severely cripples agricultural output and limits Nigeria’s potential in the international market.

“It is a known fact that the beef we produce in Nigeria does not meet international standards because of the distance our cows trek, running thousands of kilometres.

“This arduous movement drastically affects both meat and milk production. While cows in other countries yield between 30 and 50 litres of milk daily, Nigerian cows barely produce three litres,” Chideraa said.

He emphasised that a policy confining livestock to specific areas, whether through semi-intensive or fully intensive ranching, is long overdue.

He noted that the failure of the previous RUGA project stemmed from a lack of proper consultation and public education, which led many to view it as a socio-cultural agenda.

“The government must carry all stakeholders and farmers along at this time. If the policy can take care of livestock farmers within their respective zones, empowering them in the Southeast, Southwest, and North respectively without relocating people, it will eliminate the menace of farmer/ herder clash. If we still go about grabbing people’s land for this program, it will be dead on arrival,” Chideraa warned.

Also speaking to BusinessDay on the issue, Jide Ojo, a prominent public affairs analyst, described open grazing in modern-day Nigeria as an “eyesore” and a major driver of regional instability.

Ojo pointed out that the unregulated movement of herders facilitates the smuggling of arms and ammunition across the country, turning a commercial venture into a severe security threat for host communities.

He added that the menace has even breached the federal capital. “Even inside the GRAs of Abuja, in Guzape and Asokoro near government lodges, you see cattle grazing. What are cattle doing in that environment?”

“Nigeria is not the only cattle-breeding country in the world. In Kenya, Ethiopia, South Africa, and Brazil, you do not graze cattle on the streets. You have them ranched, and that is the way forward,” Ojo said.

Responding to public anxieties that establishing permanent ranches across all 36 states could exacerbate localised insecurity or lead to demographic expansion, Ojo argued that containment is actually the solution, not the problem.

He drew a parallel to the ongoing debates surrounding state policing, noting that proper regulatory parameters would mitigate abuse.

“The source of insecurity is having these cattle freely grazing in open spaces. The best way to deal with it is to have them run so there are no excuses. Nobody will use it as a pretext to destroy farmlands or move weapons.”

Ojo also flagged the porous nature of Nigeria’s borders and the ECOWAS protocol on the free movement of goods and services as compounding factors, allowing herders from Mauritania, Chad, and Niger to drift into Nigeria unchecked.

To halt the crisis, Ojo urged the government to act with the same urgency currently applied to constitutional amendments for state policing.

“Anybody who wants to rear cattle should buy plots of land, fence it around, and allow their cattle to graze within that space. The government should enforce a maximum six-month grace period for everyone in the cattle-rearing business to comply,” he added.