Special News Report
By Chukwudi George Ozalla
The three major sociocultural organisations representing the Tiv, Idoma and Igede peoples of Benue State have rejected the Federal Government’s inclusion of the state in the pilot implementation of its National Ranching Policy, insisting that no ranching programme should be imposed on the state without the consent of the state government and affected communities.
The Mzough U Tiv (MUT), Ochetoha K’Idoma (OKI) and Omi Ny’Igede (ONI), in a joint position paper signed by their respective presidents-general, described the proposed intervention as a matter that touches directly on land ownership, security, agriculture and the constitutional relationship between the Federal Government and states.
The position followed the August 11 announcement by the Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Mukhtar Maiha, that Benue, Plateau, Nasarawa, Kaduna and Adamawa states, alongside the Federal Capital Territory, had been selected for the pilot programme because of their history of farmer-herder conflicts. The minister said the initiative would begin with the Wase Grazing Reserve in Plateau State as a proof of concept for the Federal Government’s new ranching model.
The three organisations said they supported the modernisation of Nigeria’s livestock sector and had no objection to commercially viable ranching, but rejected what they described as the proposed conversion of ancestral agricultural land into permanent pastoral settlements.
According to them, the Federal Government’s plan to rehabilitate grazing reserves and develop what it calls “Renewed Hope Livestock Villages” raises questions beyond livestock production, particularly because the proposed facilities are expected to include housing, schools, healthcare centres, water infrastructure, electricity, markets, veterinary clinics and other social amenities.
The Federal Government had previously announced plans to transform 417 grazing reserves into Renewed Hope Livestock Villages, with infrastructure including schools, healthcare facilities, markets, abattoirs, veterinary services, irrigation, roads, water and security facilities. The livestock ministry has also partnered with the Rural Electrification Agency on solar-powered electricity for the reserves.
The Benue groups argued that such facilities could transform what is described as ranching infrastructure into permanent settlements, with long-term demographic and political implications for host communities.
They therefore asked the Federal Government to clearly distinguish between a commercial ranch and a permanent human settlement, arguing that while privately established ranches could operate under existing laws, the creation of government-designated pastoral settlements without the consent of host communities would be unacceptable.
A major part of their objection centred on Benue State’s existing Open Grazing Prohibition and Ranches Establishment Law, 2017.
The organisations argued that any livestock development initiative in Benue must operate within the state’s existing legal framework, which prohibits open grazing and provides for ranching.
They also referred to a Federal High Court judgment in Makurdi in suit No. FHC/MKD/CS/56/2019, which, according to available accounts of the judgment, restrained the Federal Government and its agencies from compulsorily acquiring or allocating land in Benue for RUGA settlements or cattle colonies contrary to the Constitution, the Land Use Act and the state’s 2017 law.
The groups consequently argued that the Federal Government could not simply select Benue for a ranching programme without addressing the state’s existing legislation and land administration framework.
They further questioned the consultation process preceding the pilot programme, saying the Federal Government had disclosed engagements with more than 34 pastoral organisations but that the three Benue sociocultural organisations, traditional institutions and farming communities were not consulted before the state was selected.
The organisations described such a process as inadequate for a policy intended to resolve a conflict involving both pastoralists and farming communities.
They said genuine consultation must involve state governments, traditional institutions, farming communities, livestock farmers and sociocultural organisations in the affected states rather than concentrating engagement on pastoral interests.
The groups also expressed concern about the security implications of implementing the ranching programme in Benue, a state that has suffered repeated attacks and large-scale displacement in recent years.
They argued that the priority should first be the protection of communities, prosecution of perpetrators, safe return of displaced persons and restoration of farming activities before any programme involving permanent livestock settlements is introduced.
The position paper cited figures of more than 7,000 deaths and over 1.5 million internally displaced persons in Benue since 2015, while also pointing to continuing attacks in parts of the state.
The organisations said the figures demonstrated why the state should not be treated merely as a testing ground for a new livestock policy.
“Security and justice first, resettlement of the displaced second, reparations third,” they said, arguing that livestock modernisation could subsequently proceed within a state-led, voluntary and commercially driven framework.
The groups also challenged the Federal Government’s focus on cattle, saying a comprehensive livestock policy should extend beyond large-scale cattle production to poultry, piggery, sheep and goat farming, aquaculture, rabbit production and other livestock enterprises.
They argued that thousands of Benue residents, including women and young people, already operate livestock businesses and should benefit from government investment in the sector.
According to them, a policy that concentrates federal infrastructure and investment around large-scale cattle ranching risks overlooking existing smallholder livestock farmers who are already contributing to Nigeria’s food supply.
They also questioned the proposed rehabilitation of the 417 grazing reserves, asking the Federal Government to publish a comprehensive inventory showing their locations, sizes, current occupancy and legal status before any rehabilitation or conversion takes place.
The organisations maintained that historical grazing reserve designations could not automatically be treated as vacant land available for contemporary use, particularly where communities had subsequently occupied, cultivated or otherwise developed the areas.
They consequently demanded a comprehensive audit of the reserves in Benue to establish their legal status and present land use before any decision is taken.
The three groups, however, stressed that their position should not be interpreted as opposition to livestock development or to pastoralists.
They said ranching was a modern and potentially viable economic model, provided it was voluntary, commercially driven, privately operated and established through lawful land acquisition or leasing.
Their preferred model, they said, would allow any investor, whether from Benue, another part of Nigeria or abroad, to establish a ranch after lawfully acquiring or leasing land through the state’s land administration system and complying with applicable regulations.
They also proposed a broader Benue livestock development framework covering different animal protein sectors rather than concentrating government resources on cattle.
On security, the organisations called on the Federal Government to strengthen operations against armed groups and criminal elements responsible for attacks and displacement, while ensuring that displaced farming communities are able to return safely to their ancestral homes.
They also asked the Federal Government to consider a presidential commission of inquiry into killings, destruction and displacement in Benue, with responsibility for identifying perpetrators, recommending prosecutions and considering reparations.
The groups called on Governor Hyacinth Alia to formally communicate to the Federal Government that Benue had not consented to the ranching pilot as currently designed.
They further urged the governor to strengthen the state’s existing anti-open grazing law, establish a Benue State Livestock Modernisation Commission and conduct a comprehensive audit of historical grazing reserve designations.
For the Minister of Livestock Development, they demanded broader consultation with farming communities, traditional institutions, state governments and sociocultural organisations before implementation in the pilot states.
They also asked Maiha to clarify whether the proposed Renewed Hope Livestock Villages were intended strictly as commercial livestock facilities or as permanent settlements.
The position of the Benue groups comes as the Federal Government pushes ranching as a replacement for long-distance movement of cattle, which the livestock ministry has described as increasingly unsustainable because of pressure from farming, urbanisation and infrastructure development. The government has also said the ranching programme is intended to reduce farmer-herder clashes while increasing livestock productivity and attracting investment into the dairy and wider livestock value chain.
The three organisations said Benue’s objection should therefore not be interpreted as a rejection of livestock modernisation, but as a demand that any such programme respect the state’s laws, land administration system, security realities and the rights of host communities.
They maintained that the Federal Government should support states with funding, technical expertise, veterinary services and security rather than impose a competing land-use framework.
In their final position, MUT, OKI and ONI urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to withdraw Benue from the pilot programme pending formal consultations with the state government, the House of Assembly, traditional councils, farming communities and the three apex sociocultural organisations.
They said they were prepared to pursue what they described as legal, constitutional, civic, diplomatic and democratic avenues to protect the land and interests of the people of Benue State.
