By Chinyere Anyanwu
Outspan Nigeria, a subsidiary of ofi, has announced plans to roll out a series of tech-driven solutions to deepen its backwards integration impact in the dairy value chain. The plans were announced during the World Milk Day commemorative event organised recently, in partnership with the Kano Dairy Union in Tasa Village, Dawakin Kudu Local Government, Kano.
World Milk Day is celebrated globally and this year’s theme, “Let’s Celebrate the Power of Dairy”, put the spotlight on the importance of milk in the global nutrient mix. The event offered Outspan Nigeria a platform to engage with critical stakeholders in the dairy value chain. Through a partnership with Kano Dairy Union, the company continues to invest in improving access to milk among local households. Since it began investing in backwards integration half a decade ago, Outspan Nigeria has established milk collection centres, implemented animal health improvement programmes, feed and fodder development, conducted artificial insemination exercises and held continuous farmer capacity building workshops. These efforts have helped create market access, raise livestock health, improve milk production, raise dairy farmers’ incomes and reduce hawking among the farmers’ wives while providing the means to enrol more farmers’ children in school.
The company’s planned rollout of tech-driven solutions will incorporate digital platforms for farmer education, data analytics for better decision-making, and modern farming equipment to help smallholder farmers scale up their operations with greater effciency as part of a broader commitment to improving food security in Nigeria.
Dr. Isah Abubakar, Backward Integration Manager at Outspan Nigeria, who addressed dignitaries at the event, said technology will be a game-changer in addressing long-standing challenges in the dairy sector. According to him, “milk is a vital source of nutrition, and our efforts aim to make high quality dairy products accessible to communities across Nigeria. We plan to roll out a series of tech-driven solutions to expand the impact of our intervention efforts in the local dairy value chain. Technology is revolutionising the dairy industry and keeping the country in step with industry trends. It will raise efficiency and optimise productivity in the chain.
“Our vision is to build a smarter, more productive sector that contributes meaningfully to national food security and economic development. By embracing technology, we believe we can increase efficiency, reduce costs, and improve the overall quality of our dairy products, which will contribute to the growth and development of the entire livestock industry”, he stated.
Praveen Paulsamy, Vice President of ofi’s dairy business in Nigeria, said, “the World Milk Day commemoration serves as a reminder of the critical role dairy farmers and the livestock industry play in ensuring food security and promoting sustainable agriculture. We will continue to consider opportunities that enable quality investments in developing the local dairy value chain to drive more productivity in dairy farming communities.”
He commended the Federal Government, Kano State government, and the Minister of Livestock Development for their continued support and the enabling environment they have created for livestock development, while commending Kano Dairy Union for its strong partnership and collaborative efforts.
During the event, farmers, community chiefs and the government praised Outspan Nigeria’s value chain effort. The Ward Head of Dawakin Kudu, Alhaji Abba Yusuf, expressed satisfaction with the company’s outstanding support for farmers. Sani Umar, Village Head of Tasa, praised the partnership between Kano Dairy Union and Outspan Nigeria for boosting dairy farmers’ capacity and improving milk collection and storage, adding that the initiative has raised household incomes and increased school attendance, with children now able to read, write, and help record milk collected for production.
The Chairman of Kano Dairy and Livestock Husbandry Cooperative Union (KADALCU), Abdullahi Usman, represented by the Union’s Organising Secretary, Abubakar Adamu, commended the company for providing support with solar panels, generators, and freezers, among others. Hajiya Maimuna Sani, a farmer’s wife, commended Outspan Nigeria for creating market access for dairy farmers, enabling more enrolment of farmers’ children in school. The World Milk Day event featured a quiz and competition for primary school students, as well as the distribution of school bags, books, and other educational materials to farmers’ children. Prizes and awards were presented to the most productive farmers and outstanding workers in milk collection centres.