In a recent report by The Sun, former Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh, discussed an agreement Nigeria made with ECOWAS countries in 1998. He said this agreement, signed by then-Military Head of State General Abdulsalami Abubakar, allows cattle from all over West Africa to graze freely in Nigeria. However, Ogbeh noted that while cattle from Nigeria are theoretically allowed to graze in other West African countries, this rarely happens in practice.
Ogbeh shared a specific incident involving former Governor Masari of Katsina State. He said one night, when he was serving as Minister of Agriculture, Masari called him at 1:00 a.m. with a concern. He said Masari reported that 3,000 cows had arrived in Katsina from Mali in one night.
In his words: “One night, when I was minister here, Governor Masari (immediate past governor of Katsina State) called me at 1:00a.m. He said, Honourable minister, I have a problem. What problem? He said 3,000 cows have just arrived from Mali in one night. Yes, 3,000″….Seē _ Morē
