The African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) has called on African governments, investors and development partners to reposition the continent’s pastoral livestock sector as a major economic driver capable of boosting food security, industrialisation, regional trade and inclusive growth.
Speaking at the opening of the First African Pastoral Markets Forum in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, recently, AU-IBAR Director, Dr Huyam Salih, said Africa must move away from viewing pastoralism primarily as a humanitarian issue and instead recognise it as a strategic economic asset with significant investment potential.
Salih said livestock contributes nearly one-quarter of agricultural Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in sub-Saharan Africa and accounts for between 30 and 80 per cent of agricultural value added in several African countries. She added that pastoral production systems support more than 268 million pastoralists and agro-pastoralists across the continent.
Despite Africa’s large livestock population, she noted that the continent captures only a small share of the sector’s economic value because pastoral economies remain underrepresented in national accounts and receive limited financial and private-sector investment.
To address the challenge, Salih said AU-IBAR, with support from the Gates Foundation, established the African Pastoral Markets Development (APMD) Platform to strengthen policy reforms, promote viable business models and attract investment into livestock value chains.
She said pilot projects in Nigeria and Kenya had shown that commercially viable pastoral business models could improve market access, strengthen value chains and attract private capital.
According to her, the five-day forum is designed to facilitate partnerships among governments, investors, financial institutions, development partners and pastoral enterprises to accelerate livestock market development across Africa.
Salih urged commercial banks and investors to provide financing to unlock investment opportunities across livestock value chains, while calling on governments and Regional Economic Communities to strengthen livestock trade corridors, harmonise regulations, and facilitate cross-border trade.
Also speaking at the forum, Ethiopia’s State Minister of Livestock and Fisheries, Dr. Fikru Regassa, described pastoralism as a key production system supporting food security, exports, employment and rural livelihoods across the continent.
He said pastoral communities continue to face challenges, including poor infrastructure, inadequate financing, weak transport systems, climate change, limited market information and trade barriers.
Regassa called for increased investment in veterinary services, livestock markets, processing facilities, transport infrastructure, cold-chain systems, digital technologies and animal traceability to improve the sector’s competitiveness.
He added that while the African Continental Free Trade Area offers significant opportunities for expanding livestock trade, achieving its full potential would require the removal of tariff and non-tariff barriers, harmonised sanitary standards and stronger regional trade corridors.
Representing the African Union Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy and Sustainable Environment, Dr. Janet Edeme said developing pastoral livestock markets would advance economic transformation, climate resilience, peacebuilding and the African Union’s Agenda 2063.
She urged African governments to invest in market infrastructure, veterinary systems, livestock processing industries, digital technologies and climate-resilient production systems, while expanding financing and entrepreneurship opportunities for women and young people.
Speaking on behalf of the Gates Foundation, Senior Officer for Livestock and Economic Opportunity in Africa, Dr. Tom Osebe, said Africa holds about 20 per cent of the world’s cattle, 27 per cent of its sheep, 32 per cent of its goats and more than 15 per cent of its camels, but generates only a fraction of the sector’s potential economic returns.
Osebe disclosed that the Gates Foundation is supporting AU-IBAR’s African Pastoral Markets Development Platform to help unlock an estimated $3 billion in planned pastoral investments over the next three to five years through improved policies, market integration and investment data.
