World Veterinary Day 2026: NVMA urges urgent reforms, stronger funding, and recognition of veterinarians as key defenders of Nigeria’s food systems and public health.

As Nigeria joins the global community in marking World Veterinary Day 2026, the country’s veterinary profession has called for urgent reforms, increased investment, and greater recognition of a sector it considers vital to national survival.

Under the global theme, “Veterinarians: Guardians of Food and Health,” the Nigerian Veterinary Medical Association (NVMA) warned that Nigeria’s food systems, public health security, and environmental stability face growing risks due to persistent underfunding, weak institutional frameworks, and poor policy implementation.
In a statement issued by its National President, Dr. Moses Arokoyo, veterinarians were described as the backbone of food safety and disease prevention, operating within an increasingly complex global health landscape.
The association noted that veterinary professionals play critical roles across Nigeria’s food value chain, including livestock production, disease prevention, abattoir inspection, laboratory diagnostics, surveillance systems, and policy advisory services. Despite these responsibilities, the NVMA lamented that their contributions remain largely underestimated and underrepresented in national planning.
“From farm to fork, from laboratory to legislation, the veterinary profession underpins the safety, security, and sustainability of food systems while serving as the first line of defence against zoonotic disease threats,” the statement said.
The association further warned that climate change, antimicrobial resistance, and emerging infectious diseases have blurred the lines between animal, human, and environmental health, making veterinary services more essential than ever.
According to Dr. Arokoyo, the world is now firmly operating within a One Health framework, where diseases can easily move between animals and humans, with environmental factors accelerating transmission. He explained that veterinarians are increasingly central to outbreak control, food safety assurance, vaccination programmes, and surveillance systems aimed at preventing pandemics.
This development, he said, positions veterinary medicine not as a supporting function but as a core pillar of national health security.
A major concern raised by the NVMA President is the lack of structured data to capture the economic potential of Nigeria’s livestock sector, prompting a call for a long-overdue livestock census. He added that interventions such as outbreak containment, meat inspection results, and vaccination achievements are often undocumented, weakening the profession’s visibility in policy and funding decisions.
“If it wasn’t measured, it didn’t happen,” he said, urging practitioners to improve documentation practices. He stressed that surveillance and reporting should be seen not as routine bureaucracy but as critical advocacy tools to demonstrate impact and attract sustained investment in animal and public health systems.
He also pointed to fragmentation within Nigeria’s health and food systems, warning that siloed operations limit effective crisis response. He called for stronger integration of veterinary services into One Health coordination platforms, emergency operations centres, and policy development processes.
“Together everyone achieves more,” the statement added, emphasising the importance of inter-agency collaboration in addressing modern health challenges.
The association acknowledged the growing role of emerging technologies in veterinary practice, including digital disease reporting, portable diagnostic tools, genomic epidemiology, and telemedicine for rural outreach. However, it cautioned that innovation must be guided by ethical standards and strong regulation.
Dr. Arokoyo raised concerns about increasing cases of quackery and misuse of veterinary drugs, especially antibiotics, warning that such practices could worsen antimicrobial resistance and threaten both animal and human health. He called for stricter regulation, professional accountability, and improved mentorship for young veterinarians.
Despite its importance, the NVMA President noted that the veterinary sector continues to face structural neglect. He called for full implementation of the National Veterinary Policy, adequate staffing of veterinary departments at state and local levels, and sustainable funding for critical interventions such as vaccination programmes, abattoir upgrades, and antimicrobial resistance surveillance.
He warned that failure to address these gaps would expose the country to preventable disease outbreaks, food security threats, and significant economic losses.
Dr. Arokoyo also stressed that veterinarians play a vital but often unrecognised role in safeguarding Nigeria’s stability, working daily across farms, clinics, laboratories, and abattoirs to ensure food safety, animal health, and public protection.
He appealed to the Federal Government to prioritise the recruitment of more veterinarians, stating that their role as a bridge between human and animal health must not be compromised. “Employ us to safeguard Nigerians, employ us to do our job; shared environment is shared risks,” he said.
As World Veterinary Day 2026 is observed globally, the NVMA President urged that the occasion should go beyond celebration and serve as a time for national reflection. He called for renewed commitment to strengthening veterinary systems as a foundation for public health and economic resilience.
He concluded that veterinarians are not just animal health professionals but essential guardians of food systems, public health, and environmental stability. In a world facing increasing health uncertainties, he warned that continued neglect of the sector would come at a high cost.
“Let today be more than a commemoration,” the statement said. “Let it be a recommitment to excellence, to One Health, and to the people and animals we serve.”