Better Data on Livestock Disease May Unlock Nigeria’s Dairy Dilemma
Nigeria faces a dairy dilemma. The most populous country in Africa needs to feed its 186 million people (and counting). Dairy products are a critical part of diets, particularly for young children, and Nigeria annually consumes 1.7 million tonnes of milk. However, domestic production only generates one-third of this, so over 1 million tonnes of milk must be imported annually, at a cost of US$ 480 million (source: PWC 2016).
Improving Nigeria’s dairy value chain is a complex task, and increasing production is an important piece of the puzzle. This means investing in healthier, more productive animals – but where to start?
To tackle this issue, the University of Edinburgh Supporting Evidence Based Interventions (SEBI) project has been supporting a study of the most impactful livestock diseases in Nigeria, starting with cattle and small ruminants in 7 Northern states.
Header photo: ICRAF/Sherry Odeyo (source)