2025 Ministerial Press Briefing Series: Nigeria to Harness N33trn Revenue Potential in Livestock

The Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Maiha, has disclosed that the Ministry had begun drastic reforms in the sector to harness its N33 trillion revenue potential in the country.

The minister also said the Ministry “aims to increase the livestock sector’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contribution from $32 billion to $74 billion by 2035.”

Maiha, who made the disclosures Friday at the 2025 Ministerial Press Briefing Series, hosted by the Ministry of Information and National Orientation, said the Ministry had put in place machinery to transform the country’s livestock industry.

He, however, said the consumption of hide and skin, commonly known as pomo, was costing Nigeria at least N23 billion annually and depriving the country of approximately 700, 000 jobs.

Maiha also disclosed that the Ministry was committed to diversifying the country’s economy and increasing its contribution to the Gross Domestic Product to 10 per cent from 5 per cent by 2030.

“It is estimated that Nigeria’s livestock sector is valued at over 33 trillion, making it one of the most significant, yet underutilised, economic assets in the country. We have one of the largest livestock populations in Africa, a rapidly expanding market for meat and dairy products, and a strategic location for exports.

“However, poor infrastructure, inadequate investment, outdated production methods, and persistent conflicts between farmers and herders have prevented the sector from reaching its full potential.

“Recognising these challenges and the enormous opportunities, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu established the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development on July 9, 2024, to drive a new era of transformation, innovation and sustainable growth. Our mandate extends far beyond traditional livestock management. We are here to diversify the economy, drive industrialisation, strengthen private sector participation, and secure Nigeria’s future in the global agricultural market.

“Over the past few months, we have laid the foundation for sustainable and inclusive growth. Our goal is for Nigeria’s livestock sector to become a major contributor to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) from the current 5 percent to 10 percent by 2030, creating millions of jobs, and producing sufficient meat, dairy and other animal products to not only meet domestic demand, but also compete in the global market.

“The administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is, therefore, committed to delivering real and measurable progress that translates into better opportunities for livestock producers, more jobs for Nigerians, greater food security, and a stronger economy.”

According to Maiha, the Ministry will position Nigeria as a key player in both domestic and international markets for animal protein like Brazil, Argentina, and the United States.

He said the Ministry “will reposition Nigeria’s livestock sector to generate over 500, 000 new jobs, thus helping to reduce unemployment and drive rural economic growth by 2027.”

“The Ministry is already engaging stakeholders, including traditional rulers, development partners, and foreign embassies, to raise awareness of the sector’s potential.

“Nigeria has forged strategic partnerships with international investors, agencies, and diplomatic missions to secure technical expertise, financing, and investment in the livestock industry. Partner countries include Brazil, China, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Mexico, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the United States.”

According to the minister, these collaborations will focus on opportunities in meat processing, dairy production, animal health, feed production, and cold-chain logistics.

“These partnerships will be instrumental in positioning Nigeria as a regional and global hub for livestock production and export.

“The Ministry is addressing challenges of poor infrastructure affecting the sector, by revamping grazing reserves nationwide, equipping them with feed and fodder facilities, water resources, veterinary services, and schools for pastoral families.”

Earlier, in his welcome address, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, stressed that the briefing session served as a platform to showcase the achievements of the Tinubu administration across the various sectors of the economy.

He said, “It is my pleasure to welcome you to the second edition of the 2025 Ministerial Press Briefing Series. As you may recall, on Tuesday, February 11, 2025, I inaugurated this year’s series by highlighting key successes of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.”

He noted that the Ministries of Livestock Development and Regional Development were the latest additions by President Tinubu that were established to harness the vast potential of “Nigeria’s livestock industry and to drive regional development across the six geo-political zones.”

“These two Ministries happen to be the newest in the country. The Ministry of Livestock Development was created in July 2024, to transform Nigeria’s multi-billion-dollar livestock potential into actual economic prosperity for Nigerians, while the Ministry of Regional Development was created in October 2024, to oversee the activities of the country’s regional development commissions. These two Ministers have since hit the ground running, and they are here today to shed more light on what they have been working on since the creation of their Ministries,” he said.

The minister commended the media for their dedication in covering the Ministerial Briefing Sessions, describing them as “invaluable partners” in informing Nigerians.

He urged journalists to uphold accuracy and fairness in their reporting.

He said further, “The media have remained invaluable partners in our stride to continue to update Nigerians on the laudable achievements of the Tinubu Administration. I urge the media to ensure that these briefings are reported with the utmost sense of fairness and accuracy. There should be no recourse to sensationalism in the reporting of government policies and programs. Criticisms and disagreements are welcome, in the spirit of democratic practice, but misinformation and disinformation should have no room whatsoever in public discourse.”

Idris gave the assurance that the government would provide a wide publicity for the briefing sessions across multiple media platforms to promote accountability and encourage public feedback.

Grazing routes, border control against disease outbreaks

Also, the federal government, in a bid to control the outbreak of diseases in cattle, assured of its readiness to create border control posts for international grazing routes in Nigeria.

Maiha said the government would create a veterinary control post along the cattle routes while taking inventories of all cattle entering the country.

“Nigeria has the biggest cattle market in Africa which allows cattle into the country; hence the government will ensure the digitalisation of all grazing routes across the country to ensure international boundary and disease control.”

“We are the biggest market in Africa. We receive cattle as far as from Sudan, Chad, Niger and other countries and they live inside this country. What is absent today and we have started taking inventories, they also link up to the grazing routes, and all of them end in designated grazing reserves.

“We want to digitise them as well as international cattle routes so that for international cattle routes, we will put border control posts for disease, international boundary, and disease control.

“It is on record that the first cases of anthrax were imported to this country from our neighbours. If we had had control from these international cattle routes, we would be in a position to arrest that situation. We are going to create veterinary control posts in all of these cattle routes and start taking inventories from Adamawa, Borno, Yobe, Katsina, Kano, down to Niger state; this is very important; hence there is no contradiction here.”

Maiha said further that to ensure traceability of cattle and enhance public health safety for meat consumption, the government would ensure the tagging of all cattle while linking all up-coming ranches in the country to the state abattoirs.

“It is important. We should be able to trace every piece of meat you buy from the grocery. For issues of health that borders on public safety, we will link up all ranches that are coming up in this country to the state abattoirs. Each ranch will be dedicated to an abattoir so we can know the history of the animal.

“We know the medication, we have the records. This animal will have an antenatal inspection, meat inspection, and meat certification, everything you go to buy. So, once you are eating your meat, you know from which farm it is coming from and that is the international standard because we want to aim at the international market.”

According to him, in addressing one of the major challenges facing the livestock industry which is inadequate infrastructure, the Ministry is revamping grazing reserves nationwide, equipping them with feed and fodder facilities, water resources, veterinary services, and schools for pastoral families.

“With more than 417 grazing reserves spanning over five million hectares, the government aims to transform these areas into economic hubs for beef production, dairy farming, and leather processing.”

In a related development, the Minister of Regional Development, Abubakar Momoh, has said the creation of North-west, South-east and North-central regional Commissions recently by the federal government and several infrastructure projects being undertaken by the Ministry “will transform the country and address regional disparities across the country.”

He said this at the briefing, noting that the Commissions were designed to drive development in those regions.

“We have created the North-West and South-east regional Commissions and their boards were inaugurated last week by the President. These Commissions are set to accelerate development across their respective regions,” he said.

According to him, the Ministry has completed several key road projects and is committed to infrastructure improvement.

“One such project is the Gberegolor-Ogriagbene road in Delta state and this is an example of the government’s on-going commitment to improving transportation networks.

“For instance, we commissioned the Gberegolor-Ogriagbene Road, which is in Delta state. This is one of the key roads we have completed, and it will significantly ease transportation in the region,” he added.

He said the Ministry was committed to addressing essential services, especially water supply and electricity, adding that it had “successfully installed 257 solar street lights across the region in 2023, alongside on-going projects to enhance electricity infrastructure.”

“We have installed over 250 solar street lights in the region, and we are working on additional power projects that will help boost economic activities in the region.”

Speaking further, the minister debunked rumours about plans to scrap the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), assuring stakeholders that the Commission “remains a crucial part of the government’s regional growth agenda.”

Momoh clarified that the NDDC continues to play a vital role in driving socio-economic development in the oil-rich Niger Delta.

The minister said the Ministry of Niger Delta previously focused solely on the Niger Delta “has not been scrapped, but integrated into the broader Ministry of Regional Development.”

“The Ministry is still active but now operates with a wider scope to manage multiple regional development commissions,” said further.

He added that since assuming office in May 2024, he had overseen the Ministry’s evolving mandate, “which now includes supervising newly established development Commissions in the North-west and South-east regions, further expanding its reach and impact.”

The minister also revealed that youth empowerment remained a core focus, noting that ₦250, 000 start-up grants had been given to 300 youths who completed vocational training in 2023.

“The programme will be expanded, targeting 1, 000 youths across nine Niger Delta states, adding that the Ministry had also launched health and education initiatives, including free medical outreach programmes in states like Ondo, which have provided life-saving surgeries and treatments to thousands.