30th November, 2015
The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Mr Audu Ogbeh, on Monday in Abuja said the ministry would embark on Artificial Insemination (AI) to boost livestock production in the country.
Ogbeh said this while receiving a delegation of Irish Government officials on trade mission to Nigeria led by the Irish Minister of Agriculture, Marine and Defence, Mr Sean Coveney.
The minister said the ministry was opened to learning and exchange of ideas with her Irish counterpart to establish fodder centres across the country.
“’We have cattle breeding problems and we need to seriously embark on artificial insemination.
“We also need to create fodder centres across the country because cattle migration is causing a lot of problem in this country.
“We need to put up green areas because desertification is encroaching from the North at about 2km per annum, ’’he said.
He assured the delegation of Nigeria’s readiness to do business with Ireland, saying that there were areas both countries could benefit from.
Earlier speaking, Coveney described Nigeria as the most exciting country in the world in terms of growth in population and agriculture.
He recalled that 50 years ago, Ireland could not feed itself, saying that it could now feed 10 times the country’s population today.
According to him, Ireland has more cattle than human beings and that, the country is ready to share her expertise with Nigeria to boost animal production in the country.
Coveney said officials of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development were welcome to understudy food system and livestock management in Ireland