Why Tinubu should prioritise Nigeria’s livestock industry

Questions answered in this article:
- What is the current state of Nigeria's livestock industry and what challenges are keeping it this way?
- What are some indications that the sub-sector is not getting enough attention as it should?
- What are some ways that the Tinubu-led administration can contribute to unlocking the livestock industry's full potential?

The dawn of a new government administration provides opportunities to correct issues that predecessors left behind and focus on areas of economic and political importance. Nigeria’s livestock industry is a sub-sector that deserves more attention because it holds the potential to usher in a new wave of economic prominence if prioritised by the new Tinubu-led government. 

Its low compound annual growth rate (CAGR), which pales in comparison that of crop production, shows that there are opportunities to do more. Also, issues prevalent within the livestock subsector such as low productivity and an absence of processing and value addition capabilities within its value chain have made it necessary to spotlight the need for the livestock subsector’s prioritisation and development.   

This article will clarify the current state of Nigeria’s livestock sector, compared to the rest of the world’s and argue how prioritising it could lead to significant economic and social benefits for the country.

Livestock in the global context

Rearing livestock has been an essential part of human existence for over 11 millennia. Consuming meat, eggs, milk, and other livestock-sourced commodities has become so ingrained into our daily lives and culture that it is now a global trillion-dollar industry.

The key products that drive the sub-sector are beef, cattle milk, pork, chicken (meat and eggs), small ruminants (meat and milk), and buffalo (meat and milk). It accounts for 34% of global protein intake and 18% of dietary energy. 

To get a proper idea of the scale of the global livestock industry’s production, it is best to look at it on a per-protein basis. This allows for comparisons between products and species. 

The regions with the highest livestock production are the Eastern and Southeastern Asian regions. They account for about 19 million tonnes of production from mainly monogastric (Single stomach) species. 

In the middle, with comparable production levels of 12 to 10 million tonnes, are the Caribbean, North American, Latin American, South Asian, and Western European regions. Buffalo largely drives South Asia’s production, while milk, chicken, and beef are the major drivers in North and Latin America. On the other hand, the dairy cattle sector is mainly popular in Western Europe.

The regions with the lowest production, 4 to 1.6 million tonnes, are East and North Africa, Sub-Saharan Africa, Russia, Oceania, and Eastern Europe.  

The livestock industry is estimated to contribute about 40% to total agricultural output in developed countries and 20% in developing ones. The industry supports the livelihoods of about 1.3 billion individuals globally. In 2022, the global meat market was valued at $1.4 trillion and is projected to grow to $1.6 trillion by 2028, indicating a 2.3% CAGR.

In the US, the world’s largest beef producer, the meat industry is estimated to contribute $897 billion to the economy, equating to almost 6% of total US gross domestic product (GDP). The sub-sector also provides about 5.9 million jobs in the US, both directly and indirectly. 

India is the largest producer of livestock in the world, numbering about 535.78 million. The country’s livestock industry contributes about 4.11% of its GDP and accounts for 28.6% of its total agricultural contribution. Furthermore, the livestock sector provides livelihoods to 67% of India’s rural community and employs 8.8% (123.2 million people) of the country’s total population. The income from livestock serves as a major alternative income source for rural Indian families and has contributed towards the country’s goal of doubling the income of its farmers. 

The current state of Nigeria’s livestock sector

Examining Nigeria’s livestock industry shows that the most reared livestock has been cattle, chicken, goat, and sheep.

The demand for meat in Nigeria first began to exceed domestic supply in the early 1970s when general living standards improved. This led to importation of about 30% to 40% beef from Chad, Niger, and other neighboring nations. By the mid-1970s, to satisfy the rising needs of the population, Nigeria started importing frozen beef. Around this time, the National Livestock Production Company’s initiatives to establish domestic cattle ranches across the country recorded poor results because of poor management, poor maintenance of equipment and other factors.

Historically, most livestock activities involving cattle, sheep, pigs, horses, and donkeys were domiciled close to the Lake Chad area in Nigeria’s Sahel savanna region because of the area’s suitability for pastoral practices and the nomadic culture of the people that resided there. Subsistence farmers held the majority of these stocks. The majority of livestock production in Nigeria still takes place in the Northern region of the country due to the same reasons. According to an article quoting the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD), there were 415 grazing reserves in the country across 21 states, covering about 4.2 million hectares of land, with only two of these reserves located in Southern Nigeria, one each in Ogun and Oyo states. 

In recent times, this trend has not changed despite significant increase in the quantity of holdings. Most of these livestock are still held in free-range systems, composed of nomadic herders and smallholders.

Consider that between 2018 and 2022, the Nigerian livestock GDP only grew from ₦2.05 trillion to ₦2.62 trillion, with a CAGR of about 5.03%. This growth rate pales in comparison to that of crop production, ₦24.2 trillion to ₦42.7 trillion, with a CAGR of 12.03% recorded within the same period.

In 1981 Nigeria’s livestock sub-sector contributed 5% to total GDP, by 2022 it contributed just about 1% to total GDP. This indicates that despite the overall growth in value of the livestock subsector, overall GDP has been growing at a faster rate than it. The sluggish growth in the livestock subsector may be attributed to a host of issues and challenges prevalent within the country. We will look at these in the next section, but first let us continue examining the current state of livestock production.

Reliance on imports

Nigeria is estimated to import $1.5 billion worth of milk and dairy products annually. This comes despite the nation being in possession of the fifth largest cattle herd in Africa at about 21 million. It becomes more worrisome when you consider that Nigeria has an annual per capita milk consumption of just 1.17kg, far below the global average of 70.19kg. Despite the nation’s large cattle herd size and low milk consumption, Nigeria still imports about 60% of its dairy products. This is indicative of a significant lack of processing and value addition capabilities within Nigeria’s livestock value chain. 

The Nigerian government has described the livestock sector as a potential ₦30 trillion industry based on the collated value of the nation’s entire livestock population. It instituted the ₦100 billion National Livestock Transformation Plan (NLTP) in 2019 to improve the sub-sector. The plan, proposed to run from 2019 to 2028, is a joint venture between the federal government and the states that form part of the National Economic Council (NEC). Its initial implementation was proposed to take place in seven pilot states: Benue, Plateau, Taraba, Adamawa, Zamfara, and Nasarawa. Part of the goals was to end the prevalent conflict between herders and farmers.

Since its start, the NLTP and other similar programs have yielded mixed results, with recent calls from state governments for these plans to be reviewed and broadened with clear funding frameworks to find permanent solutions for issues such as clashes between herders and farmers. Now, let us see how this and other problems hold the sub-sector back.

Challenges facing livestock production in Nigeria

As with many sectors in the Nigerian economy, the livestock sector is plagued by several challenges that limit its productivity and growth potential. These challenges include inadequate infrastructure, lack of processing/ value addition, poor financing, widespread insecurity, poor health of animals, and climate change amongst others. 

Inadequate infrastructure: Nigeria’s livestock sector suffers from subpar infrastructure and several issues with its supply chain. There is a distinct lack of processing, storage, and transportation facilities, which makes it hard for farmers to transport their livestock to markets. Additionally, it makes it difficult to process, store and keep animal products fresh enough for usage or consumption. Similarly, the value chain for livestock in Nigeria is lacking as the country is largely unable to produce value-added products from livestock such as milk and cheese at scale.  

Poor financing: The livestock sector is largely small-scale, lacking access to proper financing facilities. This limits their ability to invest in their businesses and makes acquiring necessary inputs such as vaccines, feed, and equipment difficult. Below 20% of credit from commercial banks to the agricultural sector goes to the livestock subsector. 

Widespread insecurity: The clashes between farmers and herders in Nigeria stretch as far back as 2000. This has negatively impacted the number of cattle produced as the loss of lives and property continues to increase. Bandits and rustlers are a major problem as they attack herders and steal their cattle and make it difficult to transport processed livestock products via inter-state road networks. In June bandits attacked several villages in Niger state killing 50 farmers and rustling their livestock. 

Poor health of animals: The prevalence of diseases amongst livestock and the lack of proper veterinary services and vaccines to treat these diseases are major factors hindering the Nigerian livestock industry. There have been major outbreaks of diseases, such as Bird flu, African swine fever, and Newcastle disease, that have resulted in the loss of significant amounts of livestock and, thus profits for farmers. The country is estimated to lose over ₦29 billion worth of livestock annually to Transboundary Animal Diseases (TADs). 

Climate change: As global warming continues to affect the world, Nigeria is not exempt. Changes in the weather have led to changes in cattle grazing patterns and raised concerns over water availability. This has made it increasingly more unpredictable and difficult to rear livestock. Thus, creating issues that hamper productivity. 

The way forward

There are various solutions to the challenges plaguing the livestock industry that hold immense potential for the Nigerian economy and national development if properly implemented.

For example, by increasing government investments to develop the sector’s infrastructure, hindrances to productivity and the supply chain, such as poor road networks and poor electricity, can be addressed. There is a tunnel vision when it comes to food security that channels attention towards crop production.

Improving animal health and increasing access to animal feed will increase the quality and volume of livestock products. Additionally, to mitigate animal feed costs, the government can promote the production of animal feed crops such as cassava and maize. Encouraging the use of alternative feed, such as agro-industrial byproducts and crop residues, will contribute to lowering animal feed prices. 

Meanwhile, there is a need for more private-sector investment in the livestock industry. Providing incentives such as access to credit and tax breaks are ways to encourage private participation. Increased investments have a chain effect, like promoting the adoption of modern technology, such as automation, precision farming, and digital tools, within the sub-sector. In turn, these tools will contribute towards an immense increase in productivity and efficiency. Also, they support advanced breeding programs for livestock like artificial insemination and cross-breeding, which will help improve livestock quality and productivity.  

A country that Nigeria could learn from in terms of developing and prioritising its livestock subsector is Ethiopia. The country combined investments and targeted policies to improve the industry. The Ethiopian government launched a holistic plan, called the Integrated Livestock Development Strategy (ILDS), which focused on enhancing productivity, strengthening the livestock value chain, improving animal health services, and promoting sustainable resources management. These initiatives have helped Ethiopia’s livestock sub-sector contribute 39% to agriculture GDP and 17% to total GDP. Its contribution to agricultural GDP rises to 49% and increases to 21% for total GDP when value added services such as marketing and processing are considered.

Much of the eastern African country’s livestock growth has come from increasing their number, doing this, it was able to record about 6% annual growth. 

Ethiopia’s emphasis on livestock development has significantly enhanced food security, improved rural livelihoods, and contributed to its economic growth and development. 

Why Tinubu’s administration needs to care

The Tinubu-led government should prioritise the improvement of Nigeria’s current livestock situation due to the potential benefits that could arise from this under-appreciated sub-sector of the Nigerian economy. These benefits include food security, job creation, improved health, and economic growth amongst others. 

Food security: Nigeria is on the verge of a food crisis caused by low production levels and immense food waste. A strong livestock industry can alleviate some of the pressure in this regard and provide a reliable source of food and protein for the population, thereby improving Nigeria’s food security situation in the process. 

Job creation & poverty reduction: The livestock sector has strong potential to create employment opportunities across the whole value chain. Individuals can find jobs in animal rearing, production, processing, marketing, and distribution. Additionally, increased livestock production will lower poverty levels in rural communities and increase income and access to necessities. This would be similar to the current situation in India where the livestock sector serves as a significant support structure for the income and livelihoods of farmers and the rural population.

Health & nutrition: The growth of the livestock industry can contribute to an increase in public health and nutrition. By improving the general access to high-quality animal protein and other essential nutrients, the sector will serve as a pillar that supports the general health and well-being of the nation’s population. This in turn, can contribute to less medical spending and a reduction in the mortality rate. 

Economic growth: A flourishing livestock industry will generate income for farmers and stakeholders and provide raw materials for certain industries such as leather works and food processing. It will also allow the nation to increase its export capabilities by exporting livestock products and generating foreign exchange earnings. These factors will greatly contribute towards the nation’s long-term economic growth and development. 

By taking these potential benefits into cognisance and working closely with stakeholders to achieve tangible results, Nigeria’s new administration might be able to turn the long-neglected livestock sector around. Thereby forging a strong and sustainable industry that contributes to economic growth.