A former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Prof. Attahiru Jega, on Saturday, invited 500 stakeholders comprising technocrats, traditional rulers, and livestock researchers to develop a blueprint that could bring a lasting solution to the perennial conflict between herders and farmers in the country, Punch Metro reports.
The herders-farmers clash has been ongoing particularly in the Middle Belt for the last 10 years, leaving thousands dead, maimed and injured.
It was reported how the Federal Government launched a 10-year National Livestock Transformation Plan in 2019 to curtail the movement of cattle and boost livestock production.
But inadequate political leadership, delays, funding uncertainties and lack of expertise derailed the project, while the COVID-19 pandemic prevented stakeholders from finding a viable solution to the clashes.
Addressing journalists on Saturday, Jega, who is the chairman of the committee set up last month by Kano State Governor, Dr Abdullahi Ganduje, called for the support of Nigerians to find a lasting solution to the perennial conflict.
According to him, 500 notable participants comprising government officials, academics, traditional rulers, farmers, herders, including members of Miyetti Allah, and researchers on livestock, drawn across the country have been invited.
He said, “The primary objective of the conference is to bring together a range of stakeholders for cross-fertilisation of ideas with regards to how to reform the livestock sector in this country for significant value and to ensure that such reforms are sustainable.
“It is very important that we find permanent solutions in terms of mitigating those conflicts and indeed, having sustainable ways of developing the livestock sector by actually preventing, if not totally eliminating, such conflicts. We have chosen the best of the best resource persons to make presentations during the conference.”
Jega would be assisted at the conference by former Governor of Bauchi State, Isa Yuguda; National President of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria, Baba-Uthman Ingelyarma; Managing Director of Guardian Newspaper, Martins Oloja, and 23 other personalities.
