BY Amayindi Yakubu
The need to establish cattle ranches across the different parts of Nigeria for the purpose of sustainable livestock development dates back to the days of the founding fathers of the country. That was in the early sixties. But, before then, cattle ranching had been in existence in Nigeria since the colonial era.
For instance, the Obudu cattle ranch, established in 1951, in Rivers State, is one of the colonial legacies. Up North, cattle ranching had been in existence since 1914, when African Ranches, a subsidiary venture of United Africa Company, initiated a ranch in the Western Borno region until it was later owned and managed by the government. In 1963, the United States Agency for International Development projects established the Bornu Breeding Ranch near Maiduguri and the Manchok Fattening Ranch in the Jos Plateau.
In the then Western Region, late Chief Obafemi Awolowo in 1970 created cattle ranches in Ibadan, Shaki, and Agege, which were under his jurisdiction as the premier of Western Nigeria. The ranches were managed by the Western Livestock Company before it was handed over to Odu’a Farms cattle ranch. We also had reputable Fashola stock farm in Oyo State, known for its cattle breeding.
In the 1960s, the government of Nigeria moved to bring order to livestock grazing by converting sections of forests into dedicated pastoral lands. However, with the passage of time and years, these ranches became unmanageable, hence the need for normadic herders to get pastures for their cows from wherever possible, and since then, Nigeria has known no peace, as farmers-herders clash has become a nightmare to the country and it’s people.
It is for this reason that The Pointer reached out to some Nigerians to find out if the establishment of cattle ranches is the solution to the monster that open grazing has brought to the country, and to seek their view on the effectiveness of cattle ranching if approved by the Federal Government. Find their views bellow.
Dr. Kabiru Danladi, a lecturer in the department of Mass Communication, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, who also serves as a member of the Leadership Newspaper editorial management board, speaking with The Pointer, gave an expository analysis and historical account of cattle ranching and grazing reserves, alongside with the strategies Nigeria can adopt for peace to reign.
He said, Cattle ranching and grazing reserves represent two key approaches to managing livestock in Nigeria, each with historical and contemporary relevance.
Grazing reserves, he disclosed, were originally introduced to provide designated areas for nomadic pastoralists, aiming to reduce friction with farming communities. However, due to urbanization, population growth, and climate change, these reserves have become inadequate or poorly managed.
Recently, ranching—where herders settle and rear livestock in confined, well-managed facilities has gained traction as a modern and sustainable solution. Yet, implementing ranching on a large scale in Nigeria faces significant cultural, political, and infrastructural challenges, particularly among nomadic Fulani herders who view mobility as intrinsic to their identity and economic survival.
“Ranching and properly managed grazing reserves have the potential to significantly reduce the recurring farmers/herders conflicts by minimizing encroachments on farmlands and promoting more sedentary livestock practices. However, the feasibility of this solution hinges on factors such as strong political will, equitable land access, cultural reorientation, adequate funding, and security guarantees. Without addressing underlying issues like land tenure disputes, corruption, and community distrust, the initiative risks becoming another well-intentioned policy marred by poor execution.
“The success of it will demand an integrated, inclusive approach that will bring all stakeholders—traditional rulers/ leaders, herders, farmers, state governments, and civil society to the table”.
Added to this, he said, “land should not be “gifted” to any group, including herders, as doing so would fuel perceptions of favoritism and deepen ethnic or regional resentment. Instead, access to land for ranching should be handled through legal, transparent transactions that respect state laws and local customs.
“Herders, like any private investor, should lease or purchase land in line with the Land Use Act, and the government can support this through subsidies, land banks, or partnerships that do not undermine local autonomy. Facilitating access rather than enforcing allocation is crucial to maintaining trust and ensuring sustainability.”
From Abuja, Salisu Abdullah, a political analyst has this to say: “I listen and I read a lot of opinions and I also have my own reservations as far as the issue of ranching and grazing reserves as solution to herders /farmers clash is concerned. Because I have paid keen attention to the issue since the administration of President Muhammad Buhari, even in early 2012 during the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan. I have the opinion that grazing reserves should be optional to Nigerians.
I have looked at the issue and studied the Nigerian problem in relation to farmers and herdsmen clashes. We will not say that grazing reserves or ranching will solve the problem of farmers/herders clash. If you look at countries like Brazil and other Asian countries, they have cattle ranches, where milk and other dairy products are produced. Based on scientific evidence, it has been proven that cattles in their ranches produce more milk than those that we have here in Nigeria, where open grazing is practiced. The movement of the cattle, we were told reduces their milk productivity.
The issue of giving land to herder is a very serious one in this country, and I am of the view that it’s high time we did a total overhaul of the land tenure system in Nigeria. The Federal Government, through the Ministry of Agriculture and Natural Resources should purchase the land and lease to the herders because, if you give the herders land, the issue of inheritance may come up in the future. The question may arise: Are you giving them the land for free? Are they going to be the owners of the land till eternity, or is the land going to belong to the natives of the concerned state? If it’s going to be leased or sold to the herders for ranching, what is the compensation to the communities?
Also, Israel Kaduna, a PhD student of Rural Development at Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria and a staff member of the Federal University of Education, Zaria, answering our questions, shared some thought-provoking nuggets.
In his view, Cattle ranching and grazing reserves are a top-down policy of the government, using modernisation theory, which, to him, the stakeholders are either partially involved in or not at all. Without their involvement, it may not capture the real cause of the problem, and its implementation will be ineffective.
On whether this can solve the issue of farmers/herders crisis, and how feasible is the initiative, he said:
From my submission, since the stakeholders are not involved, it will not solve the problem at the implementation stage because, at the planning stage, it ignores the role of the farmers/herders as stakeholders.
On the issue of State governments releasing lands for Ranching, he says:
Historical, herders who are core in this matter are nomadic in their approach; hence, they can’t be caged in one place, and so cannot stay in a reserve. Releasing land to them for the purpose of ranching will not solve the problem of herders-farmers clash.
In Delta State, a member of Miyeti Allah in Asaba, the state capital, Alhaji Sani Abuchi said, establishing Ranches for cattle will be an exercise in futility because, genuine herders are nomadic in nature. They move from place to place with their cattle in search of green pastures.
This is their major occupation and the traditional way they operate their business from time immemorial, therefore, it will be difficult for anybody or government to confine them to one place called Ranch.
However, one Mr Ngozi Okonkwo, who said he keeps not less than forty cows at a time, at Okwe, Oshimili South Local Government Area in the care of two Fulani herders, has this to say: “Look, I’ve been in this business for over twenty years, and I’ve never had any problem. I’m in charge, and my cows have never strayed into anybody’s farm, let alone cause any destruction in a farm. This is because I confine them to a land that I bought with my money. The herders take them out to graze in designated places.
I know the two herders, they are Fulani, they don’t make trouble. They have no guns, no dangerous weapons of any kind. I feed and pay them, while they take care of my cattle.
The point am trying to make here is, there are genuine herders, who are majorly Fulanis. They are a peace-loving people. They don’t make trouble. They graze their cattle peacefully without molesting their host or anybody.
But as you and I know, there must be a black leg in any group of people. Among the people who claim to be herders, we have the black legs, the criminals among them. So, what needs to be done is to find a way to fish out the black legs among them, and the issue of farmers-herders clash will be a thing of the past in Nigeria.
But if the government feels the best way to go is to establish Ranches, well and good. It will be ok by me, because it will help to bring a measure of sanity into cattle grazing and management. If this is achievable in other advanced country, why not in Nigeria?
At Ughelli, where there is a pool of members of the cow slaughters, who craved anonymity, they unanimously said, Ranching is the best solution to farmers-herders classes in Nigeria.
They complained that the clash between the two groups has negatively affected the availability of cows to sustain their business and expressed the fear that, if the matter is was not addressed, they may be thrown out of business.
“This matter has been lingering for too long, we are begging the government at all levels in this country to act fast in order to help us sustain our business.
”Government and all the stakeholders should be sincere in this matter and find a lasting solution to the problem. Anytime we hear of farmers – herders clash, our hearts ache because, that would mean that, in that area, those who slaughter cows may have shortage of cows to slaughter. And when their is shortage, the cost price at point of purchase goes up. And who suffers it? Those of us who buy the cows to sell, and the consumers who buy from the open market.”
However, two young Fulani herders, innocently grazing their cattle, numbering about thirty near St. Mulumba’s College, Okpanam in Oshimili North Local Government, spoke in Hausa language, mixed with pidgin English. “ This is our school and business. We came here from Sokoto to help graze these cows. This is what puts food on our table. This is our farm and business. Our father did same and taught us this business. If you say we should not do it again, then hunger will kill is, we don’t know how to do any other thing for a living”.
Asked if they would like it if government confined them to a Ranch, where they could keep and care for their cows? The two, who simply identified themselves as Abdul and Danladi said, laughing,”that will mean we won’t be able to move from place to place again. No we don’t like that. We want to move from place to place with our cows. It gives us joy. It makes us strong and fit . If you put us for one place, we go die quick. We nor go gree. We nor like am at all at all.”
Interestingly, the two, who claimed to be brothers admitted that, they don’t make trouble when they go out to graze their cows. “Look, we nor get gun, we nor de look for trouble. Na food we de find for our cow”, they added.
