From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
President Bola Tinubu has reaffirmed his commitment to revitalising Nigeria’s livestock sector, aiming to transform it from a subsistence model into a thriving commercial industry.
He gave this assurance on Thursday in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil at the signing of a Letter of Intent between the Nigerian Government and the JBS S.A, one of the top three largest meat-processing companies globally, according to a statement issued by Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
He outlined a vision to address the longstanding conflicts between farmers and herders in Nigeria by revitalising the livestock sector, which he believes can turn “tragedy and hopelessness into economic opportunity.”
Tinubu stressed the need for a modern approach to resolve these issues, highlighting the potential of a $2.5 billion investment in Nigeria’s livestock industry.
He said: “We are trying to turn a situation of tragedy, hopelessness into economic opportunity, see through problems and see the opportunity that is involved in it.”
The Nigerian leader called on the company to see the considerable potential in what he called the $2.5billion livestock investment opportunities in Nigeria, especially with its huge population and tap into it, given JBS S.A’s globally recognised expertise in the area of guaranteeing food security.
Founder and President of the JBS group, Wesley Batista, said the company is the largest employer of labour in Brazil with over $79 billion dollars revenue already in year 2024.
“We are glad to work with Nigeria to work together to develop the livestock industry there. We think it’s a good opportunity for our business in Nigeria and Africa as we believe Nigeria can be the centre of supply of protein to many countries in Africa.”