The Gombe State Government through its Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support (L-PRES) Project, has trained 67 livestock farmers on pasture development.
Speaking in an interview, in Gombe on Tuesday, the Coordinator, Gombe L-PRES Project, Prof. Usman Abubakar said the training was to enhance the livestock value chain.
He said the participants were ex0osed to modern ways of pasture development for businesses, stressing that harnessing fodder value chain remained key to empowering youths as well as tackling unemployment.
He said with the training, there would be a culture of growing quality pasture for livestock along the fodder value chain as one of the solutions to the clashes between crop and livestock farmers.
“The training will also update the farmers on the importance of the business models on livestock development in view of the importance of feeds to livestock productivity and profitability.
“There are two commodities that are crucial in farmer/herder clashes, which are the feeds and water.
“We are making efforts in boosting the availability of these two commodities in the state as a way of minimising farmer/herder contacts, which could lead to clashes.
“We are using the L-PRES project to avert farmer/herder clashes in the state by providing training on how to boost fodder development for business.
“With the water we are providing across the state and pasture development, farmer/herder clashes will be reduced.
“This is because with water supply and pasture availability, there will be no need for herders to seek these commodities in farmers farmlands,” he said.
Abubakar said that through the L-Pres project, earth dams along the corridors of grazing reserves had been rehabilitated across the state.
He said that over 63 solar-powered boreholes had also been constructed within the clusters of livestock value chain in the state.
Also, the facilitator of the training, Mahmud Bello said pasture development was a good avenue for youths to venture into, to earn some good income.
Bello, who lauded the Federal Government for establishing the Ministry of Livestock Development, urged youths to leverage opportunities in the sector to improve their lives and livelihoods.
He also commended the Gombe State government and L-PRES for organising the training towards improving the livestock sector.
NAN
