Inaccessibility To Water, Major Problem Of Livestock And Herders- KACRAN

By Bukar Bolori

Kulen Allah Cattle Rearers Association of Nigeria (KACRAN) has identified lack of access to water as one of the major problems of animal production in Nigeria and the reason for migration of livestock and subsequent clashes of herders/farmers in the country.

The National President of KACRAN, an herders association, Hon Khalil Bello said this while expressing appreciation to the North East Development Commission (NEDC) for providing several water points in the North East both for the residents be livestocks.

Mohammed, in a statement on Sunday, said: “The Commission’s determination to end the lingering water problem make us, the Herders and our host communities to consider NEDC as a blessing to us, because apart from providing water to our people, the Commission is also working assiduously to bring several important social services to our door steps.”

He said: “We are on the strong view that, water scarcity is the major problem of animal production in most of the Northern States of the country, which means that
provision of several water points by the Commission will end the unnecessary sufferings our people face for over hundred years due to either scarcity or lack of potable drinking water, which in some cases force our people to migrate from one place to another in search of it.

“A solution to Herders water problem is a solution to most of their problems because no matter how we are in the lean dry period, if there is availability of water for our consumption and that of our animals, our problem is over as per our pastoral occupation is concern.”

He said: “Similarly, we want to thank the Federal Government under the able leadership of His Excellency, President Muhammadu Buhari and Honourable members of our National Assembly for creating the Commission to steadily develop the highly devastated region and passionately appeal to our able and esteemed members to throughly assess and fully consider the multiple important responsibilities the Commission is shouldering on its neck, and as a matter of utmost importance fund it adequately and release the money on time to enable it perform excellently.

He added that: “Our appeal is necessitated due to the fact that, we fully observed that NEDC is playing a vital role towards reducing the problem of insurgency and other social vices by providing timely, much desired necessary assistance to the victims of insurgency as well as empowering and supporting them which are so helpful in building new hope in the minds of the affected victims of the insurgency.”

He noted that by given the Commission all administrative and enough cash backing will enable it to continue moving in the right direction and drastically reduce the tension in the entire North East sub-region and its neighbouring areas.