Fulani Leaders Demand 30% Ag Budget for Livestock Ministry, Pilot Ranches Across Geopolitical Zones

​Fulani leaders under the umbrella of the Confederation of Pastoralists have called on President Bola Tinubu and the National Assembly to allocate 30 per cent of the national agricultural budget to the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development.
​The coalition is also demanding the immediate establishment of pilot ranches across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, alongside the gazetting and physical protection of the nation’s 417 designated grazing reserves.
​’A N30 Trillion Sector Without Funding’
​Speaking on behalf of the coalition at a press conference in Abuja on Sunday, General Secretary of the Kautal Pulaku Fulbe Association of Nigeria, Abdullahi Ardo, lauded the creation of the livestock ministry in 2024 but warned that the initiative is failing to deliver due to zero operational momentum.
​”We commend President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for creating the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development — a historic decision that gave us hope after 60 years of agitation. However, years later, the ministry remains largely unfunded and without a clear operational framework,” Ardo said.
​Describing livestock production as a ₦30 trillion economy, Ardo warned that the sector cannot be treated with levity and urged the Federal Government to push the ministry’s activities down to the grassroots level to modernize herding into a commercial industry.
​Call for National Dialogue and Victim Relief
​Addressing the persistent farmer-herder crisis—which the leaders say has claimed over 20,000 lives over the past decade—the group advocated a national peace dialogue involving Miyetti Allah organizations, traditional rulers, religious leaders, security agencies, and state governments.
​Ardo also condemned recent unheralded security breaches targeting herding communities in Plateau, Niger, Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, and other states.
​”In the last few months, hundreds of innocent pastoralists have been killed in coordinated attacks… women, children and the elderly were killed, thousands of cattle were rustled or killed, and entire Rugas were burnt down. These killings are not reported. There is no national outrage. There is no compensation. There is no justice,” he declared.
​The coalition submitted a list of core demands to the Federal Government:
​Independent Probe: An immediate investigation into targeted attacks on herding settlements and the extrajudicial destruction of livestock.
​Humanitarian Aid: Directives to the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI) to deploy relief materials to displaced pastoralists.
​Constitutional Rights: Robust security coverage for pastoralist communities in line with Sections 14 and 33 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).
​Ardo reiterated that achieving lasting peace requires equal access to justice, structural security, and genuine cooperation between farmers, herders, and state actors nationwide.