Kano empowers 1,900 butchers to boost livelihoods, improve meat hygiene

Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf of Kano State, has launched an empowerment programme for 1,900 butchers drawn from the 44 Local Government Areas of the State, in a move aimed at strengthening small businesses, improving hygiene in meat processing and supporting the State’s informal economy.

The beneficiaries received working tools during a ceremony held last week Thursday, at the Government House, as part of the state government’s broader effort to enhance productivity in the livestock value chain.

Speaking at the event, Governor Yusuf described butchering as a critical sector of Kano’s economy, noting that the trade contributes significantly to employment, food supply and industrial development.

He said the intervention was designed to improve the businesses of butchers while creating opportunities to maximise the economic value of animal by-products.

According to him, products such as hides, bones, blood and animal waste can be processed into commercially valuable items capable of generating billions of naira if properly harnessed.

Governor Yusuf said his administration would work with relevant agencies to train butchers on value addition and the commercial utilisation of animal by-products, enabling them to diversify their sources of income.

He said the empowerment programme reflected his administration’s commitment to ensuring that governance delivers tangible benefits to ordinary citizens, particularly those operating within the informal sector.

“From the first day of this administration, we made a commitment that government must directly impact the lives of ordinary citizens.

“We also pledged that the informal sector, which provides employment for the majority of our people, would receive greater government attention. Today’s programme is another fulfilment of that promise,” he said.

The governor further noted that the butchering business sustains thousands of households across Kano, contributes to food security and supplies essential raw materials to the state’s leather and tannery industries.

Nasiru Isiyaku, Chairman of the Kano State Butchers Association, commended the State Government for the intervention, describing it as a timely initiative that would improve the economic wellbeing of members of the Association.

He said the support would strengthen their businesses and pledged the association’s continued cooperation with the Yusuf administration in advancing the development of the livestock sector in Kano State.