Botswana and Nigeria strengthen livestock partnership amid regional agricultural push

Senior ministers from Botswana and Nigeria met in Gaborone to deepen collaboration on livestock health, disease control, and sector reform, signalling a new phase in regional agricultural integration.

Botswana and Nigeria have signalled a closer agricultural partnership after senior ministers met in Gaborone to discuss livestock cooperation, animal health and sector reform.

According to Botswana Youth, Dr Edwin G. Dikoloti, Botswana’s Minister of Lands and Agriculture, received Alhaji Idi Mukhtar Maiha, Nigeria’s Minister of Livestock Development, for talks at the ministry headquarters. The discussions focused on practical areas where the two countries can share expertise, including disease control, surveillance, vaccine development, research and capacity building.

Foot and mouth disease featured prominently, reflecting the economic risks the virus poses to cattle production and cross-border trade. Both sides also examined ways to improve veterinary systems and strengthen early warning and response arrangements, which officials see as vital to protecting livestock-based incomes and national food security.

The meeting came against a broader regional push for deeper agricultural integration. A joint communiqué from Zambia and Botswana in 2024 set out plans for a Bi-National Commission and included a memorandum on livestock, apiculture and aquaculture, underlining how southern African states are increasingly using formal agreements to coordinate agricultural policy.

The Botswana-Nigeria dialogue also covered value addition, with an emphasis on processing meat, dairy and leather to support jobs, investment and export growth.