AGRICULTURE AND FOOD

Small ruminant production in Nigeria

Small ruminants (goats and sheep) are mainly produced by smallholder
farmers in low input, low yielding systems.

Industry snapshot: Nigeria’s small ruminant population

Most small ruminants in Nigeria are indigenous breeds
• Nigeria has the largest small ruminant herd in
Africa – followed by Sudan, Chad, Ethiopia and used for meat, hides and savings.
Kenya

• There are 73.8 million goats and 42.1 million

Small ruminant production systems
sheep – mainly indigenous breeds
• Small ruminants are largely kept by pastoralists &
• Small ruminants are kept by smallholder agro-pastoralists in the central and northern
farmers for meat, hides, wool and, to a lesser
parts of Nigeria.
extent, milk
• Goats and sheep mainly graze on communal
• Small ruminant population is concentrated in natural pastures and crop residues.
the North of Nigeria
• A small number of farmers practice semi-
• Gross production value of goat and sheep meat intensive and intensive systems.
in 2016 was US $373.1 and $73.4 million,
respectively
Value chains & market systems
Small ruminant meat and milk value chains are poorly
Small ruminant population by geographic zone (NASS 2011) developed.
• About 13 million producers work in the small
ruminant value chain.
• Many actors work beyond farmgate in the
livestock (goat, sheep, cattle, and pigs) value
chain. There are about 388,000 butchers and
grillers, 740,000 traders, 59,000 service providers
and 12 milk processors.
• The majority of farmers are isolated from the end
market (consumers) and have limited control
over input costs and product movement to the
market.
• Farmers have limited access to market related
information (i.e., price, value chain competitors,
and consumer preferences).
• Farmers have limited understanding of
processors requirement and lack of quality
control instruments.
 • Farmers lack of business management skills (e.g., Issues affecting production
production planning and meeting sanitary
standards). • Seasonal feed shortages (natural grasses, crop
residues).
Meat and milk yields • Limited access to veterinary services.
• Genetic potential of small ruminant breeds
• Carcass weight per slaughtered goat and sheep is
currently used.
15.1 and 12.1 kg, respectively.
• Suboptimal farm management.
• Goat milk yields are 0.5-0.6 l/goat/day; this can
increase to 0.8-1.0 l/goat/day with improved • Diseases that cause mortality or affect
feeding. reproduction.
• Both meat and milk yield are influenced by
breed, quality of feed, animal health and farm
management. Opportunities for small ruminants
• Current and estimated future meat supply does
not meet growing demand.

National small ruminant population (FAOstat)

• Demand of both mutton and goat meat is
estimated to increase by 216% while supply is
estimated to increase by 159% by 2050 (FAO
90 Goat 2018).
Sheep
80 • Population growth, increasing income, and
70 change in consumer taste are likely to drive
Million heads

60 demand rise of high-quality meat products.

50
40
30
20
References:
10
1990 1995 2000 2005 2010 2015 FAOstat: www.fao.org/faostat

NASS (2011). National Bureau of Statistics/Federal

Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development
Collaborative Survey on National Agriculture Sample
Survey (NASS), 2010/2011

This work was funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (Project OPP1134229, Supporting Evidence-Based Interventions to Achieve Agricultural
Development Goals [SEBI] LiveGAPS 2).

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