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Governor Aminu Bello Masari of Katsina State has warned that unless cattle routes nationwide were re-demarcated and made functional, addressing the issue of farmers-herders clashes might remain a daunting challenge.
During the kick-off of the re-demarcation of cattle routes at Kukar Babangida in Jibia council area of the state yesterday, Masari said most of the crises between farmers and herdsmen as well as cattle rustling sprang up after routes, solely meant for cattle, were encroached upon by framers.
Represented by the Secretary to the State Government (SGS), Mustapha Inuwa, the governor maintained that with no routes to graze, the cattle began wandering into farmlands, leading to the inevitable crisis.
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He lamented that it was now commonplace to find herders leading animals on the streets, as the routes were no longer available or not as wide as they used to be.
According to him, the state decided to re-demarcate and reclaim encroached routes by setting up beacons and putting in place measures for their maintenance.
In his remarks, the Chairman of the Committee on Improvement of Herdsmen and Farmers Relationship in the state, Abdulaziz Lawal, stated that the beacons would be built on routes measuring 905 kilometres.
According to him, 7,204 of the structures would be sited in council areas sharing borders with the Rugu Forest.
He said the exercise would be completed in six weeks, appealing for cooperation from the affected communities.
