Taraba L-PRES: Engages Stakeholders on Landmark Compartmentalization and Zoning Initiative for Livestock Production
By Our Correspondent
The Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project (L-PRES), a World Bank-assisted Project, team, led by the National Project Coordinator, (NPC) Mallam Sanusi Abubakar, met with Key Stakeholders in Sardauna Local Government Area of Taraba State, to discuss the implementation landmark of Compartmentalization and Zoning Strategy for Ranches across Sardauna Local Government Area.
The meeting was held in the Office of the Executive Chairman, Sardauna Local Government Area of Taraba State.
During the meeting, Mallam Sanusi Abubakar stressed the importance of Compartmentalization and Zoning in modern livestock production.
“We are in Gembu specifically because Sardauna Local Government Area has been chosen for Compartmentalization by our Project (L-PRES).
“Compartmentalization cuts across two of the five components of the L-PRES Project, which are innovation and institutional system strengthening, and crisis prevention and conflicts mitigation.”
“We have come to do the mapping and to know specifically how we can come in and link investors with what is happening here. We have received requests from five countries for export of beef and a lot of export value chain opportunities and we felt very important for Sardauna Local Government Area to pilot this. We are here for the first time with all our major stakeholders, our Consultant, Animal Health Specialist, Public-Private Partnership (PPP) specialist, as well as Representatives of our investors”
“This is our mission and we are serious about turning around the livestock fortune of this Local Government; we are coming with this project which will immensely benefit Sardauna Local Government and the general Citizenry, because this project will enhance the economy of Mambilla Plateau and we are ready, we are here for business” he enthused.
On her part, the Lead Consultant on compartmentalization, Dr. Maimuna Habib, said their duties were to ensure that the whole of Sardauna Local Government is disease free.
She explained that the Local Government would be considered as a Disease Free Zone and every Ranch as a compartment, and that every compartment must be disease free. “We would ensure that every livestock farmer keys into this project as no ranch would be exempted and no ranch owner would be expected to say he is not interested”; she stressed.
Dr. Maimuna assured the ranch owners that there are several incentives that they would benefit from the project. She enumerated those incentives to include, drugs, vaccines, slaughter slabs, modern abattoir and modern veterinary hospital, among others, adding that the farm owners would have free vaccination and treatment of their animals for a period of about two years once they have registered to participate in the compartmentalization project.
She urged the Council Chairman to give all required support to ensure that every ranch owner is registered.
Speaking on Compartmentalization and Disease Free Zone (DFZ) the Animal Health Specialist, L-PRES National Coordination Office, Dr Mustapha Mohammed said basically, Disease Compartmentalization deals with designating an area that is considered free from Transboundary Animal Disease (TADs).
In his words: “we have diseases that hinder us from engaging in trade with the international communities. There are countries that are asking for our animals and products of our livestock, but we are constrained in Nigeria because we have TADs that are endemic in the country.
“These diseases constitute technical trade barriers, and we can only embark on international trade when we conform to required international trade standards. There are certain internationally recognized organizations and bodies that set guidelines and regulations for trade with the international communities’
He continues; “Nigeria is large and we may not be able to set the whole country free of all Transboundary Animal Diseases in one moment that is why an area has to be chosen. The Mambilla Plateau is chosen to pilot this activity because of some comparative advantages of the area, such as good climatic conditions, the livestock management system practiced, large numbers of livestock available and the market. So, if we can work around here, the ranches would serve as Compartments and the whole of the Mambilla Plateau as a Disease-Free Zone. Then certain activities could be carried out to make sure that those diseases are taken off from this zone”.
He maintained that once these activities have been carried out, investors would come in, L-PRES would intervene, and the area would have access to certain infrastructure and other social amenities.
In his response, the Executive Chairman, Sardauna Local Government Council, Hon. Mohammed Umar appreciated the L-PRES national delegation and assured them of his support. He specifically vowed that he would do everything possible to ensure that every ranch owner in Sardauna Local Government Area is registered to participate in the project.
The Wakili of Fulani Mambilla, Ardo Bawa, who spoke on behalf of the livestock stakeholders, agreed to work to sensitize the livestock farmers on the benefit of the initiative and to address any concerns or challenges that may arise during its implementation.
The visiting national team had another exclusive session with the critical stakeholders (community engagement) where they discussed extensively on the benefits of the Compartmentalization and Zoning initiative. Questions and Answers were featured prominently. The livestock farmers expressed satisfaction with the new idea and promised to embrace it.
The National team, led by the NPC also had a field trip to some ranches on the Mambilla Plateau to have a firsthand look at those ranches and take their sizes and GPS coordinates. Speaking in an interview, shortly after the field trip, Dr Sanusi expressed satisfaction with what he saw. He said weather of Gembu is conducive and that already the livestock farmers on the Mambilla Plateau have organized ranches in place and that they only needed to align themselves with the compartmentalization and zoning initiative to benefit maximally.
The National Project coordinator and his entourage rounded up the national assignment at the Mambilla Plateau, by paying a courtesy visit to her Majesty Dr. Aisha Shehu Audu Baju II, a fellow Veterinarian and President of the Veterinary Council of Nigeria (VCN), to intimate her of their mission to the Mambilla Plateau.
Her majesty, appreciated the team for the visit, saying; “We are excited that something like this is coming our ways, where we can contribute to it for the benefit of our people.
Thank God, that we have a President who has interest in livestock reform and has created the Ministry of Livestock. I think it’s time for Mambilla people to key into the President’s Renewed Hope Agenda of the livestock and to look at the best model of ranches”.
Details of the team’s visit is contained in a Press Release signed and made available to newsmen by Artimas Ezra, COMM/ICT Officer,Taraba L-PRES
