The Federal Government says more than 1.44 million Nigerians have benefited from the Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project (L-PRES) nationwide since its inception.
The National Project Coordinator of L-PRES, Dr Sanusi Abubakar, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja at the project’s mid-term review meeting.
Abubakar said the figure had exceeded the project’s initial target of 1.43 million beneficiaries.
He said the meeting was convened to assess progress, identify implementation gaps and agree on strategies to accelerate delivery and deepen impact.
According to him, beneficiaries include 546,000 females and 903,000 males, reflecting the broad reach of the project.
“These interventions, ranging from training and advisory services to vaccination campaigns, pasture development, infrastructure support and input distribution, are helping farmers improve productivity, resilience and income generation,” he said.
Abubakar said livestock production indicators had also improved, with milk production per cow rising from 274.5 litres to 375.9 litres annually, while cattle carcass weight increased from 135kg to 160kg.
He added that sheep production had also improved from 14.22kg to 21.43kg, while goat production continued to show steady progress.
He identified animal health interventions as a key pillar of the project.
Abubakar said the livestock sector remained a major economic opportunity with the potential to create jobs, improve food security, expand exports and support rural livelihoods.
He said the project had reached over 388,000 farmers with agricultural services, while more than 101,000 farmers had adopted improved livestock technologies.
He also disclosed that over 6,184 personnel had received specialised training, representing significant progress in institutional strengthening.
The trained personnel include extension workers, veterinary officers and artificial insemination technicians supporting livestock service delivery nationwide.
He said 1,492 farmers had benefited from artificial insemination services, with over 3,489 cattle already inseminated.
Abubakar said the project was expanding economic opportunities for women and strengthening household resilience in rural communities.
He said L-PRES, funded by the World Bank to the tune of $500 million over six years, is aimed at improving livestock productivity, strengthening resilience and enhancing value chain commercialisation.
He added that the project aligns with the Federal Government’s livestock transformation agenda under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu.
The World Bank Task Team Leader for L-PRES, Dr Menniviel Sene, urged faster implementation to ensure sustainable results for farmers and communities.
The meeting was attended by World Bank officials, state project coordinators, the Nigerian Institute of Animal Science, the Veterinary Council of Nigeria and the Food and Agriculture Organisation, among others.
