The Livestock Productivity and Resilience Support Project (L-PRES) has constructed a solar-powered, 40 million-dose capacity veterinary cold chain storage facility in Lagos to address chronic vaccine supply and storage challenges across Nigeria’s South-West region.
Minister of Livestock Deveopment Idi Mukhtar Maiha who inaugurated the facility said the cold chain was one of six being constructed across the country.
Maiha said that four of the facilities had been completed, with three already commissioned, adding that the Lagos facility would serve the South-West region.
He maintained that the facility was designed to provide adequate storage for vaccines and biological reagents for both government and private-sector users.
According to him, animal health was a major component of livestock development noting that proper vaccine storage would contribute to improved productivity and resilience across the livestock value chain.
Maiha said L-PRES had also built 21 veterinary hospitals and about 50 clinics across the country, alongside ambulatory veterinary services, milk collection centres and boreholes.
He said the interventions were aimed at addressing gaps in animal health, productivity, commercialisation and resilience in the livestock value chain.
He noted that the establishment of the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development had further strengthened efforts to develop the sector.
On his own part, National Project Coordinator L PRES Dr. Sanusi Abubakar said that the facility would be operated under public private partnership for sustainability
Also speaking, Mr Wale Raji, Chairman, House Committee on Livestock Development, said inadequate supply and poor storage of vaccines had been major challenges in the livestock industry.
Raji said poor storage could reduce vaccine potency or result in vaccines reaching end-users with expired lifespan or at times, lack potency.
“This facility is established to address inadequacy of supply, quality of vaccines and enhance productivity in the livestock sector,” Raji said.
He said the Lagos facility would serve not only the state but the entire South-West, noting the importance of the region to Nigeria’s poultry, pig and other livestock production.
Contributing, Dr Oluwarotimi Fashola, Special Adviser to the Lagos State Governor on Agriculture and Food Systems, said the facility was significant to Lagos and the South-West because of the region’s large livestock population.
Fashola said the facility had the capacity to store 40 million vaccine doses and would provide a centralised system for storing and distributing vaccines.
He said farmers in Lagos and other parts of the South-West would have access to the facility through collaboration among the Federal Government, Lagos State Government and private sector.
He said the facility was equipped with solar power to ensure uninterrupted refrigeration and reduce dependence on diesel and petrol.
He added that its tripartite management structure involving the Federal Government, state government and private sector would support its sustainability.
Newsmen reports that the facility was established under L-PRES to strengthen animal health and improve productivity, commercialisation and resilience in Nigeria’s livestock value chain.
