One of the most puzzling things in Nigeria has been the speed with which the Nigerian dwarf goats, sheep and cows seem to be disappearing.
Over the Christmas weekend, this writer wanted to gift some of these types of goats to family members in Igboland, but was told that the goats were no where to be found in the target town and the nearby ones. The contact also stated that the cow equivalents called “Efi Igbo” in Igbo language was even scarcer. In fact, when one of the prominent rich men wanted to buy one of this type of cows for his annual family festival, none could be found in nearly all of Anambra state!
But, what got the writer worried was that when he wanted to know why finding the goats and cows was difficult, the voice from the other side of the phone line asked a very disturbing question: "WHY DO YOU WANT THESE TYPES OF GOATS?" He asked with an air of incredulity. He sounded almost indignant. “Who buys those goats these days?” he asked.
The writer then proceeded to inform the indignant man that those goats are famous abroad both as pets and as choice meat. The man was shocked. “What??” he asked, in shock. The writer informed the man in Nigeria that a lot of Nigerians and others in the US eat goat meats, and the dwarf goats form a major part of the goat census in the US.
At this point, the problem became clear. It is the usual problem that has kept Nigeria poor.
It is Nigerians' inability to see value in what God naturally endowed the country with.
If petroleum were not in huge quantities underground in Nigeria, the resource would have since been depleted, and future Nigerians would have had to import the resource to see what it even looks like.
It may still happen!
Well, this dwarf goat, sheep and cow problem is a challenge, and a huge opportunity.
-Nigerialog.com
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