Chicken butchers appeal to govt, banks for capital

He fends for both his immediate and extended family of 21 from what he realizes from this job.Mohammed,from Madobi in Kano State, in this interview with our correspondent at a poultry farm where he was contracted on the eve of the Eid-el-Fitr Sallah to slaughter and prepare chickens for customers in Birnin Kebbi, said only […]

He fends for both his immediate and extended family of 21 from what he realizes from this job.
Mohammed,from Madobi in Kano State, in this interview with our correspondent at a poultry farm where he was contracted on the eve of the Eid-el-Fitr Sallah to slaughter and prepare chickens for customers in Birnin Kebbi, said only N50,000 take off capital is stopping him from venturing into full time chicken trading.
He said of his 10 years’ experience in the job, he makes as much as between N2,000-N3,000 from about 150-200 chickens he slaughters and ‘dress’ daily.
Ironically though, Mohammed said he makes much lesser than N1,000 during festive periods like Sallah at their slaughter slab because of the exodus of gatecrasher into the slaughtering businessfrom across the state.
“We get less patronage during festive periods, especially Sallah, because of the exodus in high number of neighborhood makeshift slaughterers that prevent most of our customers from coming to us.
“Even at our sheds, many part-time chicken slaughterers gatecrash and take most part of the business from us. So, unlike what people think, Sallah period is not a good time for our work.
He said he was born in a polygamous family of 21 and is still the family’s breadwinner when his father took ill. “I am the bread winner of the family. I assist my parents and paid my father’s hospital bills for about eight years of his illness before he died and at the same time fend for my mother and my other younger ones and relations,” he said.
He said the job gave him the opportunity to do part time buying and selling of chicken due to high demands by customers who frequently invited him to supply and slaughter chicken in many states in the North.
Mohammedsaid, the job has also exposed him to very important personalities who ordinarily he would not have met, especially those that invite him for home service in poultry farms or residences.
“Most of those big chicken dealers who are millionaires today started from slaughtering chicken like us.They were able to get help with soft capital from individuals to start up the trading and most of them are also helping us with few chickens to sell and make little profit for ourselves.
“If you can secure a loan of only N50,000 for me, it will be enough capital for me to start the trade. I can assure you that I will realise up to 150% turn-over interest in a year.
“My father, who was a big time chicken merchant in Nigeria before he took ill, had tried to discourage me from joining the trade. He went as far as buying me a bicycle to encourage me to further my education after completing primary school, but failed to convince me because my friends who were already in the trade have already brainwashed me to take to the chicken business after my father.”
He said he was convinced to take up the job to help his family and the society when he was 18 years old. He said he is one of the very few chicken slaughterers who charge only N20 as against N50 per chicken slaughtereddressed or chopped into bits.
He said he is very happy with the little money he makes daily, though barely enough, but with it he manages to support 21 extended family members, including his wife and his seven-year-old son.
He said some of the major challenges of the work are the health hazards associated with itwhich includes acute cold due to frequent direct contact with water, frequent burn from the hot water and accidental cuts from knives as well inhaling polluted air.
“I will never allow my son who is currently in primary one to take up the work,” he replied when asked whether he will allow his son to take after him.Instead he insisted that he will go to every length to encourage his son to go to school.
He said the basic tools needed in the job is one owns a knife, while the association takes care of providing other materials such as a drum of water and firewood at the slaughter depot in the market.
He said, because of the current insecurity situation in the country, they were compelled to form an association to monitor and regulate the activities of their members.
He said the association of chicken slaughterers charges N2,000 to register new members and that each member paysaweekly due of N100.
“We use the revenue generated from these levies to assist distressed members. We support about 100 registered members who may have been involved in accident, illness, marriage, death, naming ceremony and so on.
We even settle the rent of our members whom we know could be at the point of being kicked out of their rented homes.  
The association sanctions any member who tries to violate our hygiene standard and restriction by ensuring, for instance, that no dead bird is brought to the slaughter depot without confirmation of where it was killed and brought for dressing.
We need government to grant us soft loans to enable us to engage in buying and selling of chicken because, right now, we depend on major dealers who give us few which we sell and then pay them back.
“We could not get close to government, but we are calling on those in authority to come to our aid because that will also help to reduce the rate of unemployment that has resulted into youth restiveness and other insecurity and vices associated with unemployed youths in the country.
The only time we had assistance was through Vice President Namadi Sambo who gave N500,000 to our association while I was the vice chairman of the association then in Kaduna many years ago.
Government should really look into our plight and come to our aid with a soft loan because I have many customers that will patronise me if I set up my own business.
“ I want to make progress in life and reduce the risk that we are exposed to in the job,” he added.
The Kebbi Director, Federal Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Kelvin Tekpat, said the ministry is preparing a programme to help chicken slaughterers and butchers to access small credit and loans from banks.
“It is a gradual process and we are already encouraging them to key into the programme and quite a lot of banks have declared interest and are ready to help.
“All they need to do is that, once they organise themselves into an association, they should go to any of the Federal Ministry of Agric offices nationwide so that the ministry will link them up with banks to access the loan,” he said.
The director also said the ministry is looking at the agric sector, including other sub-sectors like poultry that are expected to support government in enforcing the ban on importation of frozen chicken.
He said farmers will be supported with day-old chicks too.