Noah Ebije, Kaduna

The Northern States Governors Forum (NSGF) held an emergency meeting  in Kaduna, yesterday, to work towards  resolving  issues of insecurity, cattle rustling, livestock management, Almajiri, and other challenges bedeviling the region. 

The meeting held at the Government House, Kaduna, was presided over by the Forum’s Chairman, and Governor of Plateau State, Mr. Simon Lalong.

Lalong  said the emergency meeting was summoned to address matters of urgent importance on the survival of the region as well as the wellbeing of the people.

In attendance were governors of Plateau, Niger Jigawa, Zamfara, and Kwara States. Governors of Benue, Borno, Sokoto, Nasarwa, Kaduna, Katsina and Kano, however, sent their representatives.

In his opening remarks, the Plateau governor lamented the spate of insecurity occasioned by kidnapping, banditry and armed robbery in the region.

He said the governors met to receive the report of the committee on insecurity in the north  headed by the Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari and to discuss the recommendations on how to halt the  menace. The committee which  was set up in  May, 2019, has as its Secretary, Aminu Tambuwal, the governor of Sokoto state.

He also decried the problem of almajiri bedeviling the region.

Lalong, also said the governors would deliberate on the National Livestock Transformation Plan proposed by the Federal Government for states, noting that the project had been misunderstood for the Rural Grazing Area (Ruga) initiative.

Lalong said the clarification was important because of the urgent need to cultivate all stakeholders and provide a conducive environment for nomadic herders and those who rear livestock.

“As a region that holds the comparative advantage in livestock management as an economic and socio-cultural vocation, we need to come up with a common front on how to synergize and draw from the funds available for the programme and ensure that we derive maximum benefits for our people.”

He said the plan was to develop strategies on how best to deal with the misinformation about the NLTF, which is sometimes confused with Ruga.