Dairy Farming’ll Curb Farmers, Herdsmen Clashes, Says Buhari

• Dairy Farming’ll Curb Farmers, Herdsmen Clashes, Says Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday said a dairy farming initiative being championed by the Kingdom of Denmark and the Kaduna State Government would go a long way in curbing clashes between herders and farmers which had left many people dead.

The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, in a statement, said Buhari spoke while receiving the outgoing Ambassador of the Kingdom of Denmark, Mr Torben Gettermann, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He quoted Buhari as telling his guest that once dairy farms were made economically viable, herdsmen would see the reason to remain in one place.

This, the President argued, would curb the incessant bloody clashes between them and farmers.

Adesina quoted the President as saying, “The establishment of dairy farms, as being promoted by the Kingdom of Denmark, will save the country from the almost perennial problem of clashes between herders and farmers, made worse by population explosion.

“When the dairy farms are economically viable, the herders will see the need to stay in one place, as they will realise that productive considerations, rather than the number of heads of cattle, are more important.”

Adesina said Gettermann told the President that the concept of dairy farms was to have 1,000 families of herdsmen with 12,000 heads of cattle in a location, where they would have veterinary attention, schools for their children, and generally live as a small community.

He said a Danish company, Arla, would then buy the milk off the cattle farmers, adding that the concept was not the same as ranching.

The envoy said the Danish government would bring investors through its agriculture counsellor in the country, while the Kaduna State Government would provide initial infrastructure and funding.