26th July, 2017
The Federal Government has advised state and local governments to adopt a Public Private Partnership (PPP) in the management of abattoirs in their domains.
Dr Gideon Mshelbwala, the Director, Livestock and Pests Control Services, Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, gave the advice in Abuja on Wednesday.
Mshelbwala, who expressed regret over the deteriorating condition of abattoirs in the country, said that such partnership would promote hygiene in the country’s abattoirs.
“Federal Government does not operate the abattoir; it is the states and local governments (that do that).
“So what we do are interventions so that they can improve on the quality of the standards of the abattoirs.
“What we advocate now is for public private partnership relationship because it is a business (in which) you can create revenue and generate money.
“So we advocate for entrepreneurs to get involved in abattoirs while the states can also collect taxes.
“We have taught them all the good management practices – how they can operate these things.
“We have shown them all the Standard Operation Procedures (SOPs) – how they can management these abattoirs (and) how they can take the (animal) wastes; but compliance is a different thing.
“We teach them all these things, but the enforcement is another thing.
“The states more or less concentrate on revenues but leave the hygiene and sanitary aspect of abattoirs like that.’’
Mshelbwala said that in 2016 the Federal Government rehabilitated abattoirs in Suleja, Niger State, in Lafia, Nasarawa State and in the Federal Capital Territory.
“We made the abattoirs clean; where there was no tiles we tiled.
“We raised the floor a little higher; where there was no water, we provided water and also constructed drainage,’’ he said.
The director added that the Federal Government was developing a `Meat Hygiene Act’ to help regulate operations of meat handlers.