News
‘N179bn Cattle Ranches In States, Threat To Peace’
The Federal Government’s decision to create ranches in some states has triggered serious confusion among the state governments, herdsmen and farmers, investigations have shown.
Our correspondents, who spoke with governments, farmers and herders in the affected states, report that though several states rejected the plan, some were awaiting further details, while the rest embraced the project for political reasons.
The development has also pitched the herdsmen and the farmers associations against each other.
The Federal Government, last week, unveiled the plan, expected to cost N179billion over a 10-year period, to improve livestock production in the country and put an end to herders/farmers crisis.
Adamawa, Benue, Ebonyi, Edo, Kaduna, Nasarawa, Oyo, Plateau, Taraba and Zamfara states would receive interventions in form of ranches in the pilot phase.
In Ebonyi State, Governor David Umahi vowed to resist any attempt to convert land in the state into a cattle ranch by the Federal Government.
Umahi, who was the chairman of the mediation committee on the farmers/herders clashes, said his panel merely recommended that state governments, willing to embrace the project, were free to do so, through the Anchor Borrowers’ Scheme.
He said, “Federal Government has not taken any land from anywhere in the country. No state government has been forced to give any land for ranches. There is no land for ranching in Ebonyi State.”
The Benue State Government and the leadership of Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) have also disagreed over the issue.
While the state government rejected the planned cattle ranches, the herders group said the state government’s resistance might create more problems.
The Miyetti Allah vowed to continue to oppose the state government’s anti-open grazing law, a situation that would lead to further clashes.
The state Governor, Samuel Ortom, who spoke through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Terver Akase, explained that Sections 5 and 8 of the Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranching Establishment Law of the state had already mapped out procedure for acquiring land for ranches.
According to Akase, the Benue State Government has not repealed the existing anti-open grazing law.
He wondered why the same government would begin to donate land for people to establish ranches.
But the National Coordinator of MACBAN, Mr. Garus Gololo, said his group was in full support of the Federal Government’s proposal to establish ranches in 10 states, including Benue.
Gololo said, “If the Federal Government wants to establish ranches, they are free to do so anywhere in the country but there must be schools, veterinary hospitals and other social amenities as well as shelters where the cows can stay.
“Benue State said it had rejected the Federal Government plan; the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association has also rejected the Benue anti-opening grazing law too.”
The Edo State Government had yet to take any action on the national ranching project as it had not been discussed at the State Executive Council meeting.
The Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Monday Osaigbovo, who spoke to one of our correspondents on the telephone, said the state would support the project only “if it is going to be done as it is being done abroad.”
The Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has, however, advised Governor Godwin Obaseki not to cede any land in the state to the Federal Government to create ranches.
The party’s Chairman in the state, Chief Dan Orbih, said the national livestock transformation plan was a subtle way of dispossessing farmers and other property owners of their land.
He said, “Edo people say no to cattle colony. Edo PDP openly rejects the new national policy on ranching.
“It is an attempt to grab our land. No Edo community to date has agreed to give a portion of its land for the purpose of establishing a cattle colony; we say no to the new national policy by President Muhammadu Buhari.”
The Nasarawa State Governor, Tanko Al-Makura, has approved seven grazing reserves in the Awe, Keana, Doma, Assakio, Konva, Gtata and Kurudu local government areas of the state for the take-off of the programme.
The Taraba State Government and the leadership of MACBAN have expressed their support for the project, stressing that the project would solve the herders/farmers’ clashes.
In separate interviews with one of our correspondents in Jalingo, the Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Media and Publicity, Mr. Bala Dan Abu, and the North-East Zonal Chairman of MACBAN, Mr. Mafindi Danburam, commended the development.
The governments of Plateau and Adamawa said they had embraced the project.
The Zamfara State Commissioner for Agriculture, Lawal Jangebe, told newsmen that the Federal Government had yet to discuss the project with the state government.
The Oyo State Commissioner for Agriculture, Natural Resources and Rural Development, Oyewole Oyewumi, also said the state would provide land for the project in the northern part of the state and that it could be in lease form or the state contribution to the scheme.
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.