The Federal Government has officially launched the National Strategy and Action Plan (NSAP) on Animal Genetic Resources (AnGR) management, a framework aimed at boosting Nigeria’s livestock productivity while safeguarding animal biodiversity critical to national food security.
Speaking at the launch event in Abuja, Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Maiha, described the initiative as a significant milestone in the country’s livestock history.
He explained that the strategy was developed under the Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project (L-PRES) and aligns with global standards.
“The declaration recognizes the role of animal genetic diversity in ensuring food security, improving human nutrition, and supporting rural development. It affirms the shared and individual responsibilities of governments to conserve, sustainably utilize, and further develop AnGR. It also calls attention to significant capacity gaps at national and international levels and urges coordinated action, including increased funding and institutional support,” Maiha said, referencing Nigeria’s commitment to the Interlaken Declaration of 2007.
The declaration, which Nigeria co-adopted along with 105 other countries, emerged from the first International Technical Conference on Animal Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture in Switzerland.
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Maiha emphasized that the Global Plan of Action (GPA) for Animal Genetic Resources remains a central framework guiding national interventions.
The GPA outlines 23 strategic priorities across areas including inventory and monitoring, sustainable use, conservation efforts (both in-vivo and in-vitro), policy development, and capacity building.
“These priority areas provide the framework for effective development, utilization, and both in-vivo or live population and in-vitro or gene banks conservation of animal genetic resources,” he noted.
He added that full implementation of the strategy would help reverse the decline in livestock biodiversity and preserve endangered native breeds essential to Nigeria’s agricultural systems.
Also speaking at the event, Dr. Sanusi Abubakar, National Project Coordinator for L-PRES, called for urgent and accountable implementation.
He highlighted the strategy as both a local and international roadmap to manage animal genetic resources more responsibly.
“The plan aims to promote the wise management of animal genetic resources and serves as a framework for international cooperation on AnGR. It is a critical tool for domesticating the Global Plan of Action for the management of these resources,” Abubakar said.
He recounted Nigeria’s diminished standing at a key global meeting due to non-compliance with earlier commitments.
“A delegation from the defunct Department of Animal Husbandry Services and L-PRES attended the Global National Coordinators’ Workshop and the 13th Regular Session of the Intergovernmental Technical Working Group on AnGR at the FAO Headquarters in Rome in November 2024. To our dismay, Nigeria was seated as an observer, unlike other African countries that participated as full delegates. This was due to our failure to meet the obligations of the Interlaken Declaration and the Global Plan of Action on AnGR, which we had signed and adopted.”
“This realization became a driving force for us, leading to the development of the National Strategy and Action Plan on AnGR. Today, we are here to officially launch the NSAP and inaugurate the National Advisory Committee,” he added.
Abubakar expressed confidence that the strategy would help restore Nigeria’s place within the international livestock community and provide a coordinated pathway for sustainable growth in the sector.
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Image Credit: Farmer’s Weekly Magazine
