As a way of enforcing bio-security measures in the poultry industry, the federal government has resolved to close down all unregistered poultry farms in the country.
This was revealed by the minister of agriculture and rural development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, when he received members of the National body of the Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN) in the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja, recently.
Ogbeh charged poultry farmers to be more disciplined on the issue of hygiene in the operations of their farms and urged them to always report incidences of diseases to avoid further losses, saying that it is only by registering with government and the poultry association (PAN) that effective containment and control of outbreaks of diseases could be successful.
The minister assured the poultry farmers of government’s resolve to revisit the issue of compensation by conducting a verification exercise to ensure the authenticity of claims by farmers affected by the Avian Influenza with a view to finding possible ways of paying.
He promised to take up the issue of multiple taxation and Value Added Tax (VAT) on maize with the presidency as it is affecting the production of poultry products in the country. According to him, government may consider the release of part of the maize in the strategic reserve to support the poultry industry because the demand for maize has become so high, and stated the need for subsidy on agriculture products, saying this would ensure the success of the proposed school feeding programme, especially with regard to eggs, milk, and poultry meat.
Ogbeh explained that the Egyptians and Americans have found vaccines for Avian Influenza but government was still studying the effectiveness of the vaccines, noting that poultry farmers would be informed on government’s decision on the issue.
On the restructuring of the Bank of Agriculture (BOA), the minister said that plans were ongoing to ensure that farmers owned the majority shares of the BOA and even sit on the board of the bank, saying that this would enable the farmers draw more benefits. He said that a dedicated website would soon be opened by government to educate Nigerians on the dangers and health implications of consuming smuggled goods.
Also in his remarks, the minister of state for agriculture, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, described as unacceptable a situation where other countries export agro-products and Nigeria imports, and gave advise on the need to take the issue of food security seriously, adding that research institutes’ outcomes should be able to change the status of the country.
Earlier in his remarks, the national president of the Poultry Association of Nigeria (PAN), Dr Ayoola Oduntan, pledged the readiness of the association to work with government and other relevant government agencies to produce affordable products for Nigerians. Oduntan said that the poultry value chain has contributed, among others, over 25 per cent to the GDP the economy with a current worth of $8 billion, and urged government to give adequate attention and protection to the poultry industry by putting up strong measures to immediately control, contain, and bring to a halt the further decimation of the
Source: Leadership news online
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