Kaduna state to spend 10bn on cattle ranching

Aanya Igomu

Kaduna State is spending 10 billion Naira to build a ranch to centralise hearders.

The Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai stated this while speaking to journalists at the National Secretariat of the All Progressives Congress, APC in Abuja.

He said the ranch which would be ready in two years is partly funded by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN with the sum of 7.5 billion Naira.

Governor El-Rufai further advised his counterparts of the Southern states not to waste energy on creating laws against open grazing that he describes as impossible to implement.

“But moving towards ranching cannot be done overnight.  We have to have a plan, we have to have resources and we have to implement it sensibly. It is not a matter of populist legislation or saying tomorrow this or that. It is not a solution.  We have taken a position as northern state governors and we are implementing that.

“And in my, state, for instance, we are developing a huge ranch to centralize the herders. And that is the solution, a long time. But can it be done overnight? No.

“This project we are doing will cost us about 10 billion Naira. The CBN is supporting us with aa bout a 7.5billion. And it will take about two years to do. We will be settling about Fulaniulani herdfamiliesmily. And I hope that they will see that there are alternative ways of producing livestock instead of running up and down with cattle going to people’s farms to cause all kinds of problems. We want to solve the problem.

“What is unhelpful is to politicise the situation and pass legislation that you know that you cannot implement. So, we have taken a position and we are working round the clock to implement that position. 

“These herders emanate from the north and we are going to centralize them. We cannot do it overnight. We need billions of naira. This is just one ranch that is causing 10 billion. I have 14 grazing reserves in Kaduna state and I will like to con them ert into ranching. Do I have 14 times 10 bilnairasnaira? I don’t have.

“If the federal government will give me a hundred and fourteen billion, I will convert the other thirteen into ranches and make sure that nobody comes out with a cow or sheep in Kaduna state because I will have enough ranches to take care of everybody.  That is the solution. You can legislate but let us wait and see. And I wish them the best of luck” El-Rufai said.