The Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to eliminating Peste des Petits Ruminants (PPR) by 2030 as it received a high-level African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) Monitoring and Evaluation Mission to assess Nigeria's preparedness and progress towards achieving a PPR-free status.
The AU-IBAR mission, supported by the European Union and other development partners, is expected to evaluate the implementation of Nigeria's National Strategic Plan for PPR eradication, review the country's veterinary systems and institutional capacity, identify implementation gaps and recommend measures to accelerate progress.
Speaking at the opening of the mission in Abuja on Monday, the Minister of Livestock Development, Idi Mukhtar Maiha, said Nigeria would continue to pursue the 2030 eradication target despite the extension of the global deadline to 2040.
Maiha said the government could not afford to slow down because of the devastating impact of PPR on rural livelihoods, noting that the disease continues to wipe out livestock and threaten the income of millions of smallholder farmers, particularly women who depend on goats for their livelihoods.
He said in a statement by Henrietta Okokon, Deputy Director, Information and Public Relations, on Tuesday that the establishment of the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development underscores President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's commitment to transforming the livestock sector into a major driver of food security, economic diversification, job creation and national development.
According to the minister, Nigeria has recorded significant progress in strengthening disease surveillance, laboratory diagnostics, veterinary governance, outbreak response, stakeholder engagement and vaccine availability.
He disclosed that the Federal Government is rehabilitating an abandoned facility at the National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI) for large-scale local vaccine production, adding that equipment has already been procured from the original manufacturer.
Once completed, the facility is expected to produce more than 100 million vaccine doses, boosting Nigeria's domestic supply while supporting regional animal health programmes.
Maiha also revealed that 20 states have established dedicated livestock ministries or agencies, strengthening collaboration with the Federal Government in implementing animal health programmes.
He added that investments are ongoing in veterinary hospitals, solar-powered vaccine storage facilities and quarantine and animal health control posts along international livestock corridors to improve disease surveillance and curb the spread of transboundary animal diseases.
The minister urged stakeholders to provide honest feedback throughout the assessment mission to help identify weaknesses and strengthen Nigeria's eradication programme.
Earlier, AU-IBAR Head of Monitoring and Evaluation, Dr. Ibrahim Cherno Jagne, described Nigeria as a strategic country in Africa's PPR eradication programme and commended the level of stakeholder engagement, describing it as the most comprehensive among countries visited under the continental mission.
Jagne disclosed that the African Union, with support from the European Union, is implementing a continent-wide PPR eradication programme valued at about $437 million, with additional funding being mobilised to strengthen surveillance, planning, monitoring and disease control across member states.
Also speaking, AU-IBAR Regional Coordinator for PPR Eradication in West Africa, Dr. Perdita Hilary Lopes, said Nigeria's large sheep and goat population, coupled with its extensive borders, makes the country central to Africa's eradication strategy.
She stressed the need for risk-based vaccination, effective surveillance systems, functional cold chain infrastructure, stronger laboratory capacity, sound governance and enhanced cross-border collaboration, noting that Nigeria's success would significantly influence Africa's overall progress towards eliminating the disease.
Representatives of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Propcom+, the Veterinary Council of Nigeria, the Sheep and Goat Farmers Association of Nigeria and other development partners pledged continued technical and institutional support for Nigeria's eradication efforts.
The AU-IBAR mission will engage federal and state veterinary authorities, research institutions, livestock producers and development partners to validate progress, identify implementation gaps and develop recommendations to accelerate Nigeria's journey towards a PPR-free status.