The Kano State Agro-Pastoral Development Project (KSADP) has handed over 98 milk collection centers to management committees across the 30 local government areas of the state, in a move aimed at improving dairy production and strengthening the livestock value chain.
The handover ceremony, organised by KSADP, was held Monday at the Kano State Agricultural and Rural Development Authority (KNARDA), with representatives of the beneficiaries and relevant stakeholders in attendance.
Speaking at the event, the KSADP coordinator, Ibrahim Garba Gama, represented by the Project’s Records Officer, Salisu Kaila, said the centres were established to create an organised and reliable system for collecting fresh milk produced by pastoralists across the state.
He added that the initiative was designed to improve the livelihoods of Fulani men and women engaged in milk production and sales, particularly those who traditionally move from place to place in search of customers for their products.
He stated further that the collection centres would provide designated points where milk producers could bring their fresh milk for easy access by yoghurt-producing companies and other commercial buyers, thereby creating a more reliable market for their products.
Gama said the arrangement would also reduce the difficulties faced by milk sellers, especially women, while helping producers obtain better economic returns from their activities. He added that the initiative formed part of broader efforts to strengthen Kano’s dairy value chain.
Also speaking, the managing director of KNARDA, Dr Farouk Ahmad Kurawa, congratulated the beneficiaries and urged them to take ownership of the facilities and use them for the purpose for which they were established.
Kurawa described the milk collection centers as an important intervention for improving cattle farming and milk production in Kano, adding that the state was the only one in Nigeria with such a large-scale network of milk collection centers.
He urged the management committees to ensure proper maintenance of the facilities, warning that failure to utilise and maintain them effectively could lead to the centers being taken back by the Kano state government.