FG, Nestle Nigeria Sign MoU On Establishment Of Skills Centre For Dairy Production
•By Admin
ABUJA — THE Federal Government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), with Nestle Nigeria Plc, for the establishment of the Nestle Dairy Technical Skills Development Centre in the FCT, aimed at improving dairy production in Nigeria.
Speaking at the signing ceremony in Abuja, Idi Mukhtar Maiha, Minister of Livestock Development, explained that the partnership was not just a ceremonial agreement, but rather a bold and decisive intervention designed to address one of the most critical bottlenecks hindering the growth of the dairy industry in Nigeria with the huge glaring gap in technical capacity and practical farm management skills.
Maiha further explained that Nigeria’s dairy sector has been caught in a paradox of immense potential and stark under-performance, despite the huge population of livestock production in the country.
“The reality is that our traditional pastoral systems, currently yields an average of merely one to two litres of milk per cow daily,” he said.
This low productivity, he said, is directly linked to a systematic deficit in modern husbandry practices, inadequate feed formulation, lack of potable water, impact of climate change as well as lack of proficiency in essential areas such as artificial insemination,herd health management and milk hygiene leading to huge post – harvest losses.
Maiha stated that, as a result of these issues, Nigeria’s annual import bill for dairy and dairy products stands at $1.5billion.
According to him, “the Nestle Dairy Technical Skills Development Centre is envisioned as a practical knowledge hub that will successfully transition Nigeria dairy farming from traditional methods to modern, globally competitive husbandry sector.
“We are actively aware that theoretical knowledge,while important, cannot substitute for hands-on experience in farm management.
“Therefore, I have directed that the curriculum for this Centre,must be rigorously benchmarked against the best standards in the global dairy industry.”
Maiha explained that the curriculum is structured to deliver 70 percent practical farm experience and 30 percent theoretical classroom teaching, adding that the 70 – 30 split would ensure that the trainees do not just learn about dairy farming in the abstract.
He pointed out the trainees would learn by doing more skills such as breeding,assisted birth,calf management,farm operations, record keeping,proper milking techniques and hygiene compliance to managing feed resources and ensuring optimal animal welfare for maximum production and milk processing .
The Minister commended Nestle Nigeria Plc for its unwavering commitment to the development of the local dairy value chain.
Earlier, the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development, Dr Chinyere Akujobi, said the success of the partnership would be measured in farms that thrive, in children who are well-nourished, and in households that earn more because their work in livestock is supported and profitable.
She explained that the agreement was designed to turn resources, knowledge, and investment into concrete improvements for mostly farmers and producers.
In his speech, the Managing Director of Nestle Nigeria Plc, Wassim Elhusseini, said the MoU formalises the establishment of a Dairy Technical Skills Development Centre, which is a practical step towards strengthening the capabilities required to improve productivity, and quality of the dairy products for long-term sustainability in the sector.
He said the initiative aligns with the objectives of the National Dairy Policy under the National Development Plan,which seeks to catalyse growth in Nigeria’s livestock and dairy sectors.
According to him, “through the project, Nestlé Nigeria has invested over N1.8 billion to support dairy communities in and around Pai-Konkore and the Luger Grazing Reserves.
This investment, he said, has delivered measurable impact, with participating milk producers increasing their monthly incomes from N70,000 to N250,000 between 2021 and 2024.
He noted that Nestle Nigeria has also established over 83 dairy cooperatives, aggregating more than 1 million litres of raw milk in Nigeria
“We have trained over 2,000 pastoralists, vaccinated over 36,000 cattle and invested in critical infrastructure, including boreholes, water troughs, milk collection and cooling systems to support productivity and quality.
“In 2025, we launched the Nestlé Daily Demonstration Farm, a practical model to show how improved breeding, feeding and herd management can increase productivity from an average of 1 litre per cow per day to 10 litres and has also demonstrated the importance of milk hygiene, animal health and more settled farming systems in achieving consistent quality and sustainable production,” he said.
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