Nigeria: Kaduna - Over 50 Members Killed, 200,000 Cattle Rustled in 9 Months - MACBAN

What the report says

Kaduna State’s chapter of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN) says cattle rustling and related insecurity have caused major losses to pastoralists since January 2026. In a briefing in Kaduna, state chairman Abdulhamid Musa said the group believes more than 200,000 cattle have been stolen in the period, while more than 50 members have been killed. The claims were reported by Daily Trust and distributed by AllAfrica.

Musa said the deaths were linked to different incidents, including communal clashes, attacks by farmers and violence by bandits during rustling operations. He said some stolen animals had recently been recovered in different parts of the country, including Lagos, and that MACBAN members were working to retrieve them for their owners. The association listed several local government areas, including Kachia, Chikun, Kagarko, Giwa, Igabi, Jama’a, Kaura, Sanga, Jaba, Kudan, Makarfi, Lere, Zangon-Kataf and Kauru, as places where losses had been reported.

MACBAN urged the Kaduna State government and security agencies to step up operations against cattle rustling, kidnapping and other rural crimes, and called for intelligence-led action in forest areas and along livestock routes. Musa also raised concern about the Rijana livestock market on the Kaduna-Abuja highway, saying the group feared stolen animals could enter the market.

The appeal highlights the wider impact of insecurity on herders and the livestock economy in northern Nigeria, where cattle are often both a source of income and a family asset passed across generations.