Nigeria, Brazil Partner to Recruit 37,000 Livestock Farmers

Daniel Adaji, Abuja

The Federal Government has announced plans to recruit 37,000 youths into livestock farming through the Presidential Initiative on Youths and Livestock Development, in collaboration with Brazil’s JBS S.A Executive Group.

Speaking during a visit by a JBS S.A delegation to the Ministry of Livestock Development in Abuja on Monday, Minister Idi Maiha emphasised that the initiative will focus on passionate young farmers.

This is according to a statement by the Minister on Tuesday.

“On the issue of the outgrower system, they are working on presidential initiatives for youths and livestock. For every state, they will work strictly with those who have a passion for livestock,” Maiha stated.

According to the Minister, 1,000 youths will be recruited from each state, profiled, trained, and linked to financial institutions and input sources. This approach is expected to drive large-scale forage and fodder production with support from state governments.

The programme, which includes women, will emphasise pasture cultivation and breeding, with state governments providing land while the federal government supplies seedlings.

For breed improvement, the initiative will employ three methods: using live bulls, artificial insemination, and embryo transfer. Maiha highlighted that this strategy is best suited for ranch settings, ensuring better reproductive success.

Nigeria’s livestock population currently stands at 20.9 million cattle, 49.1 million sheep, 88.2 million goats, 258.5 million poultry, and 9.2 million pigs, according to the Minister.

The partnership will also prioritize disease control, particularly against swine fever, anthrax, and other livestock diseases.

Maiha confirmed that the pig industry would be a key part of the initiative, with discussions already held with the Benue State governor due to the state’s strong involvement in pig farming.

CEO of JBS S.A Executive Group, Ricardo Lacerda revealed that Brazil is planning to establish 200,000 ranching operations for beef, a model that will be replicated in Nigeria.

While acknowledging that Nigeria’s chicken industry is more developed than its beef sector, Lacerda stated that the scale of broiler production would be determined as the project progresses.

He assured that Brazil is committed to further collaboration, provided there is sufficient land, and confirmed that a technical team would be dispatched for additional discussions.