Kogi monarch applauds World Bank, FG investment in livestock farming

The Ohinoyi of Ebiraland, His Majesty Ahmed Tijani Anaje, has commended the World Bank, Federal Government and Kogi State Government for investing heavily in the livestock sector to generate enormous income for Nigerians.

The royal father stated this when staff and management of the Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project, KOGI L-PRES, led by the state project coordinator, Dr Olufemi Bolarin, visited the palace of Ohinoyi of Ebiraland in Okene as part of stakeholder engagement with traditional rulers in the central senatorial district of the state.

According to the monarch, crops and livestock farming have been the trademarks of the Ebira ethnic group, noting that the massive investment in the livestock sector in Kogi State would no doubt change the lives of rural dwellers for the better.

He charged the beneficiaries of the programme to use the input that will be given to them to expand their livestock farming to generate income as well as become employers of labour in the near future.

The royal father pledged the support of the traditional institutions in the central senatorial district to enable the project to succeed and benefit the people.

Earlier, Dr Olufemi Bolarin, while reeling out some of the achievements of Kogi L-PRES, disclosed that the process of establishing a multi-million naira livestock service centre has commenced at Confluence University of Science and Technology Osara.

Dr Bolarin added that the centre, when approved by the national body of L-PRES and fully executed, will serve as a training ground for animal scientists as well as boost livestock production and marketing in Kogi State.

“We are in your domain today to seek your permission and royal blessing to commence the distribution of inputs to the 500 women and youth poultry farmers’ beneficiaries across Kogi State.

“L-PRES will offer day-old chicks, feeds, drugs and vaccines as well as input for beneficiaries of broiler production, while those in egg production get Point of Lay, feeds and drugs just as beneficiaries in the marketing and processing, will also get preservation equipment (deep freezer), generator set, stabiliser, table-size broiler birds and packaging bags,” Dr Bolarin explained.

The state project coordinator disclosed that Kogi is the only state that carried out such an intervention aimed at uplifting livestock farming in rural areas.