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Item Mixed farming in a grazing reserve in Northern Nigeria(2000) Babalobi, O. O.; Akinwumi, J. A.Nigeria's main pastoral development strategy is the settlement of pastoralists in grazing reserves. The goal of the strategy is to turn such nomadic pastoralists into mixed farmers who will take up crop farming to supplement livestock farming. Using the Bobi Grazing Reserve, Niger Stale, Nigeria as case study, the attainment of this goal is evaluated by the use of structured questionnaire, interviews, field surveys, project site visitation and personal observation. From the results, ninety-five percent (95%) of settled pastoralists willingly adopted mixed farming as an economic survival strategy. This was in response to reduced herd size on settlement, in the face of declining land available for nomadism among other reasons. Average herd size of 41.5 cattle, 14.0 gnats and 7.5 sheep was insufficient to supply household income need hence settlers took up crop farming to supplement income. Annual income from livestock farming (N62,182.00) was 78.1% of total income per settler, while crop farming supplied 21.9% (N 17.400) of the income. Farmers farmed a mean 3.97 hectares out the maximum 4.00 hectares allowed in the reserve. Ninety-five percent of settlers expressed willingness to expand farm size in response to domestic needs. Thus hitherto nomadic pastoralists became mixed farmers on settling in the reserve. Mixed farming therefore appears to be an achievable goal in Nigeria’s pastoral development strategy.Item Grazing reserves and development of traditional pastoralism in Nigeria: progress and prospects(Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Ibadan, Ibadan, 1999) Babalobi, O. O.; Esuruoso, O. O.The Nigerian beef industry is controlled by pastoralists for whom production strategies are primarily for stock survival rather than increased off-take. Their production system is in the traditional (extensive migratory) phase of development, which needs to be modernized (intensified) to bridge the increasing gap between supply and demand for beef in Nigeria while sustaining the pastoral lifestyle of the producers. In this paper, the most sustained effort at development of pastoralism - the grazing reserve scheme - is examined for its effectiveness Using the Dobi Grazing Reserve in Niger State. Nigeria as study area, its progress towards the settlement and economic development of pastoralism is evaluated. From the result, an unprecedented voluntary settlement of pastoralist and marginally improved production parameters are recorded. Possession of land rights, grazing security, presence of water and grazing resources, and the deliberate policy of encouraging transhumance activity out of the reserve during the dry season, were factors responsible for the voluntary settlement. The need for stricter stock control measures, provision of extension/veterinary services and socio-economic infrastructure and a greater involvement of settlers in the funding and administration of the reserve are highlighted as conditions for sustaining the programme.