By Faridat Salifu
The Federal Government has launched the redevelopment of the 9,000-hectare Kawu Grazing Reserve in Abuja as the first pilot site for its ‘Renewed Hope Livestock Villages,’ a programme aimed at modernising Nigeria’s livestock economy.
Speaking at the inauguration of a solar-powered borehole at the site in Bwari Area Council, Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Mukhtar Maiha, said the reserve would serve as a blueprint for transforming 417 grazing reserves nationwide into organised settlements with economic opportunities.
Maiha noted that Kawu currently hosts about 10,000 herders and 30,000 cattle, but said the government’s investment in infrastructure would reposition it into a productive hub for dairy processing, red meat value chains and organic fertiliser production.
The plan includes a 15-kilometre access road, schools, health facilities, veterinary clinics, irrigation systems and security posts, with support from the World Bank-backed Livestock Productivity and Resilience Project (L-PRES).
Senior Special Adviser to the President on Livestock Development, Idris Abiola-Ajimobi, said N13 billion allocated in the 2024 budget for livestock will be channelled into facilities such as pasture cultivation, veterinary care and mechanised water supply.
Livestock associations have endorsed the initiative, describing it as a turning point that could end open grazing in the capital while creating new income streams for pastoralist communities.
Officials said the Kawu reserve would be used as a demonstration site to attract investment and guide similar projects across the country.