Cattle Compete For Space With Humans In Nigeria – Governor Ortom
BY SAMUEL ADEBAYO, who was in Makurdi- Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue state has called on the British Government to lend its support to the entrenchment of ranching in Nigeria as the official method of animal husbandry, stressing that the nomadic system has since become archaic and must be discarded.
Ortom, who stated when he received in audience the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mrs. Catriona Laing at the Government House, Makurdi, also said that while ranching is being practiced in developed countries, animals especially cattle compete for space on roads, schools and airports in Nigeria.
He noted that such a scenario is hostile to development, adding that among other things, the attacks on communities in Benue by militia herdsmen had inflicted deep pains on the people and government of the state with thousands displaced and infrastructure destroyed.
According to Ortom; “60 percent of those who are staying in eight Internally Displaced Persons camps are children while 30 percent are women.
The governor expressed happiness that the entire country has keyed into ranching which the people of the state adopted earlier as a lasting solution to farmers/herders crisis, pointing out that what the state is still grappling with is reconstruction of the destroyed infrastructure and the rehabilitation of the traumatised IDPs.
Ortom also said that his administration places high premium on women empowerment as well as provision of employment opportunities for youths.
Earlier, Mrs. Laing said she was in the state to get firsthand information on the farmers/herders crisis and how the British government could intervene to ensure lasting peace in the state.
Laing said the British parliament has been following the development closely including alleged persecution of Christians in the country, adding that Britain would also assist in exploring the agricultural potentials of Benue State and others along the riverine areas.
