The Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) has warned that rising meat imports could weaken Nigeria’s livestock industry
The National President of MACBAN, Baba Othman-Ngelzarma, raised the concern in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja.
Othman-Ngelzarma said the association was concerned about recent reports of increased imports of beef and other meat products into Nigeria.
He stressed that MACBAN was not opposed to international trade or legitimate competition in the nation’s livestock and meat markets.
He, however, said the association opposed unfair competition capable of placing Nigerian livestock producers at a disadvantage and undermining domestic productive capacity.
According to him, Nigeria is already experiencing the consequences of similar policies in the rice sector, where increased imports are weakening local production.
He said domestic rice production had reached nearly 98 per cent self-sufficiency, but competition from imported rice was causing losses to farmers and investors.
Othman-Ngelzarma warned that Nigeria must avoid repeating the same mistake in the livestock sector, where producers already face serious challenges.
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