The Federal Ministry of Livestock Development has begun discussions with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) on technical collaboration to strengthen livestock identification and traceability, food safety, laboratory capacity and certification in Nigeria.
The proposed partnership is also expected to support Nigeria’s preparedness for increased international trade in livestock and livestock-related products.
The discussions, which brought officials of the ministry and UNIDO together, focused on practical interventions aimed at building a more efficient, transparent and globally competitive livestock sector.
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Speaking during the engagement, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Chinyere Ijeoma Akujobi, said animal identification and traceability would be critical to the growth of the sector as Nigeria seeks to expand livestock production and exports.
“No trading partner will take any piece of meat from you if you don’t have a system capable of tracing livestock and livestock products through the value chain,” she said.
Akujobi, however, stressed that quality and safety measures should benefit Nigerian consumers as well as meet international trade requirements.
“Whatever we are doing should cut across products for both international and domestic markets,” she said.
She disclosed that the ministry was working towards establishing a clear policy framework for animal identification and traceability and would welcome UNIDO’s technical support in infrastructure, software and capacity building.
The permanent secretary also sought UNIDO’s expertise on practical identification technologies, including tags and microchips, with consideration for affordability, available equipment and long-term sustainability for farmers.
Other areas identified by the ministry for potential collaboration include the development of disease-free zones or compartments, training of federal and state veterinary inspectors, strengthening of biosecurity and upgrading laboratory capacity.
Presenting UNIDO’s potential areas of support, the organisation’s Regional Programme Manager, Adalberto Carvalho Santos Vieira, said UNIDO could assist Nigeria in deploying digital technologies for livestock identification and traceability.
According to him, linking animal identification systems to databases would help strengthen animal health, build consumer confidence and facilitate access to international markets.
“UNIDO has successfully worked on livestock identification and traceability systems in other nations. We believe we can support the deployment of digital tracking technology to guarantee animal health, build consumer trust and open doors to related exports,” Vieira said.
He added that UNIDO could support testing and food safety systems, including laboratory capacity, inspector training and certification processes, while assessing existing national and regional capacities and identifying priority gaps.
The proposed collaboration is expected to strengthen Nigeria’s ability to export honey, red meat and other livestock-related products by ensuring that products can be traced, tested and certified in line with applicable international requirements.
