At Last, Emir of Katsina Bans Open Grazing  

The Katsina Emirate Council has made open grazing illegal in Katsina and its environs starting from Wednesday 04, August, 2021, issuing strong warning to herdsmen terrorizing residents

The report was credited to Wakilin Kudin Katsina, Alhaji Abdu Iliyasu, who also stated that the enforcement will begin with immediate effect, adding that machinery has been put in place to carry it out.

The spokesman for the Katsina Emirate Council, Mallam Iro Bindawa, told the Nigeria Tribune that he couldn’t comment because he was out of town, but that he would when he returned.

The ban has spread across the country just months after Governors from 17 southern states took a stand against open grazing, as Governor Aminu Masari recently announced that President Muhammadu Buhari had approved N6.25 billion for the ranch project in the state.

The governor made the revelation during the president’s presence at the commissioning of the Zobe Regional Water Scheme in the state’s Safana Local Government Area, revealing that the federal government had already made a five-billion-naira (N5bn) contribution to the project.

“Mr President has graciously approved the sum of N6.25 billion for ranch development purposes in Katsina State,” the governor revealed. Part of this sum, N5 billion, is already in the state government’s account, and you will see advertisements in the coming weeks inviting interested companies and consultants to participate.”

According to reports, southern governors kicked off the process on Tuesday, May 11th, when they met in Asaba, Delta State’s capital, and jointly banned open grazing of animals in their states. It was one of the meeting’s 12 resolutions.

Many people applauded the decision, but some in the north were initially opposed. Governors of Benue and Kano, on the other hand, expressed solidarity with their southern counterparts.