Ben Ezechime, Enugu
The Nigerian Veterinary Medical Association (NVMA) says it disbursed over N32 million grant to young veterinarians across the country in 2024 to empower them and make them self-reliant.
Dr Moses Arokoyo, the President of the association, disclosed this in Enugu during the 2025 World Veterinary Day Celebration.
Arokoyo hinted that the event was organised in collaboration with the Enugu State Ministry of Agriculture and Agro-Industrialisation.
The World Veterinary Day is celebrated annually on the last Saturday of April.
It is marked to honour the essential role veterinarians play in protecting animal health, public health and the environment.
The theme for this year’s celebration is “Animal Health Takes a Team.”
Arokoyo, represented by Dr Gloria Daminabo, the Assistant Secretary General of NVMA, said the association believed that empowering young professionals was the surest way to secure the future of veterinary medicine in Nigeria.
He said that, in partnership with the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and key players in the livestock and pharmaceutical industries, it had strengthened advocacy for better animal health polices.
According to him, the partnership has improved access to quality veterinary drugs and empowered the next generation of veterinarians.
“Just last year, we disbursed N32 million in grants to young veterinary entrepreneurs in the country.
“This year’s theme underscores a functional truth that we as professionals have always known, which is that collaboration is the heartbeat of sustainable animal systems.
“From veterinarians and para-veterinary professionals, to farmers, researchers, policymakers and private sector stakeholders, our collective strengths lies in our ability to work together across disciplines and borders,” the NVMA president said.
He, however, listed unemployment of adequate veterinary manpower by most of the government institutions, antimicrobial resistance, transboundary animal diseases, re-emerging zoonotic diseases and poor infrastructure as challenges facing the profession.
In his address, Gov. Peter Mbah of Enugu, said that his administration had significantly revolutionised the state’s agricultural and veterinary systems.
Mbah, represented by the State Commissioner for Agriculture and Agro-Industrialisation, Mr Patrick Ubru, said that Enugu State Anti-Open Grazing and Ranching Control Act had been signed into law.
The governor noted that the law had positioned the state at the forefront of organised and sustainable livestock farming.
This, he said, had put a permanent end to the issues of farmers-herders crisis, thus de-risking the entire livestock value chain in the state for potential investors.
Mbah added that the state had revamped the School of Veterinary and Investigation Centre, Achi in Oji-River Council Area.
“This project represents our commitment to elevating veterinary education and training to international standards.
“We are transforming our state veterinary clinic into a state-of-the-art Artificial Insemination and Diagnostic Centre, thereby, enhancing our capabilities in livestock reproduction and disease management,” Mbah said.
In his goodwill message, the President, Veterinary Council of Nigeria, Prof. Mathew Adamu, said that the council ensures that the training and practice of veterinary medicine in Nigeria are of world standard.
He stressed that every school that trained veterinarians and veterinary para-professionals did that based on their prescribed standard.
“So today, we are here to celebrate the World Veterinary Day, to induct the Veterinary Para Professionals trained in Enugu State and to inaugurate the Enugu State Chapter of the Veterinary Practices Committee.
“I encourage the newly inducted veterinary para-professionals to know their limit and refer any case beyond them to tertiary veterinary hospital for professional healthcare services,” Adamu advised.
