Meeting of Animal Health and Production Networks of ECOWAS Region

19 to 23 September 2016 – Abuja, Nigeria

BACKGROUND

During the 29^th Africa Regional Conference convened by FAO in Abidjan,  Côte d’Ivoire from 4 to 8 April 2016, the participants of West Africa had a consultation where food self-sufficiency in order to ensure food security and nutrition remained the top priority for the countries in the Sub-region. The consultative meeting also identified climate smart agriculture and building resilience among the priorities for West Africa. Feeding the West African population estimated at 358 million in 2016 and growing at one of the fastest rate of 2.7 per cent per year is a formidable task. Projections based on those figures indicate that the population of West Africa can reach 455 million by 2025 and almost double that figure by 2050, reaching 885 million. Other than general population growth; there is also rapid urbanization in West Africa. Currently, more than half the population in Benin, the Gambia, Cabo Verde and Ghana lives in urban areas. Population growth, urbanization and the shifting preference of the emerging middle class towards animal source food are factors which increase the demand for nutrients dense animal products. A study conducted recently (Africa livestock Future, 2014) estimated that consumption of meat and eggs will grow six to seven folds while milk consumption may triple the current value in West Africa by 2050. Current demands for animal products are partially met with imports from sources outside Africa. However, attempts to bridge the ever growing gap between demand and supply of food of animal origin through import are neither sustainable nor justifiable. 

The livestock sector in West Africa has large potential for growth and satisfying the demand. This potential can be harnessed through sustainable intensification of the livestock sector, which in turn implies better use of inputs and services, policy and institutional support and market access. Among the critical inputs and services, feed, animal health, and access to high yielding genetic material are critical ingredients often at short supply mainly due to poor investment. Under intensive production system, up to 70 per cent of cost of production goes to animal feed. In addition to heavily influencing cost of production, consistent availability of feed throughout the year is one of the major challenges of livestock production in West Africa. With the increasing number of livestock under extensive mode of production, additional grazing resources become mandatory. However, far from availability of additional grazing land, the traditional grazing lands are decreasing due to expansion of crop production, human settlement, security concerns, climate change, etc. triggering conflicts between livestock producers and crop farmers and other natural resource users. During 2016, several conflicts of this kind were recorded in Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana and Nigeria. Insecurity caused by armed rebels in Northern Mali and Nigeria and its neighbors during recent years is not only displacing pastoral communities from their homeland but curtails the use of traditional grazing areas. The prevalence of major Transboundary Animal Diseases (TADs), causing significant economic losses and posing major obstacle to human health and international trade of livestock and livestock products is another challenge facing West Africa. The resurgence of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) due the H5N1 virus in 2015 in Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, and Nigeria (and recently Niger) continued affecting the poultry industry in these countries. In Nigeria alone, a total of 3.4 million birds either died or were culled due to Avian Influenza with an estimated 23.5 billion Naira (about 12 million USD) loss (PAN, 2016). The outbreaks of Peste de Petits Ruminants (PPR) in Liberia, African swine fever in Mali, are just few examples of diseases affecting the livestock sector in West Africa in recent year. 

Due to the transboundary nature of most of the animal diseases and an extensive cross-border transhumance in West Africa, national efforts of disease control and management of grazing and water resources are not sufficient. That is why a regional approach complementing country level activities and dealing with regional dimensions becomes necessary. The establishment of the animal health networks, particularly the Epidemio-surveillance Network (better known with its French acronym RESEPI, which stands for Réseau de Epidemio-surveillance) and the Laboratory Network (RESOLAB - Réseau de Laboratoires) is part of the effort to control TADs through regional collaboration and coordination. Later, ECOWAS has included the Network of Directors of Veterinary Services (CVOs) for strategic decisions and guidance of the other two Networks. At the annual meeting of last year, the Network of Animal Production (RESPA – Réseau de production animale) was established, bringing to four the number of ECOWAS Networks dealing with the livestock sector.

Experts of animal health and production of ECOWAS member states organized under the above listed Networks (Epidemiology, laboratory, directors of veterinary services and animal production), as well as producer organizations meet at least once in a year to discuss, exchange their experiences and seek solutions to challenges of the livestock sector in West Africa. The ECOWAS annual meeting of Networks is a platform to facilitate exchange of ideas and experiences as well as analyze activities undertaken and results achieved during the previous year and plan future activities. The Network meetings also offer opportunity to debate and resolve ways of strengthening the functions of each network. Currently, there is a project run by ECOWAS and supported by FAO which intends to strengthen the networks and explore avenues for their sustainability. This year the presidents of veterinary associations/councils will be invited to the meeting for the first time to see how they can be organized to add value to the PPR global prevention strategy and disease surveillance in the ECOWAS region.

Objectives of the meeting

The main objective of the animal health and production networks meeting is to assess progress made on planned activities and agreements reached during last meeting as well as discuss emerging issues in the livestock sector to chart the way forward. More specifically, the meeting will address the following issues;

1. The members of the four Networks will discuss activities performed since last meeting and results achieved as well as plan future activities
2. Discuss emerging issues in the areas of animal health and production in ECOWAS member states and suggest the way forward.
3. Analyze a study conducted by the Support to strengthening ECOWAS institutional capacity for livestock development project (TCP/RAF/3505) on strengthening the Networks and make them sustainable. 

The meeting will discuss, among others, the resurgence of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) due to H5N1 virus, growing conflicts between pastoralists and crop farmers and the decision by heads of States and Governments of West African countries on the organization of a high level meeting, management of livestock producers displaced due to conflicts or extreme weather conditions. Emerging issues which may have influence on the livestock sector in West Africa, such as the Sustainable Development Goals, the Second Generation of ECOWAP and the formulation of Regional and National Agricultural Investment Plans, on-going major livestock projects such as EPT-2, PRAPS and those in pipeline such as REDISSE, Global PPR Control, PREDIC will also be discussed. The implementation of the above mentioned Support to Networks project as well as the study conducted on the sustainability of the Networks will be presented discussed and validated.

EXPECTED RESULTS

At the end of the Networks meeting, the following results are expected;

• Planned activities of the Networks and agreements reached last year are assessed
• The role of animal health networks and ECOWAS in the control of Avian Influenza clarified
• Modalities of inclusion of livestock and poultry sectors development in the 2^nd generation of RAIP and NAIP agreed upon.
• Preparation of high level meeting  on conflicts between pastoralists and crop farmers agreed and means of coming up with technical solution suggested
• Awareness about on-going livestock projects in the Region created and the role of Networks clarified
• Ways of strengthening the Networks and their planned activity for one year discussed and agreed and their terms of sustainable operation are analyzed and validated
• The study conducted by the Support to strengthening ECOWAS institutional capacity for livestock development project (TCP/RAF/3505) discussed and validated
• The Terms of Reference of Regional Coordinators discussed, agreed on and validated
• Modalities for strengthening communication between networks, ECOWAS and FAO agreed on and validated

METHODOLOGY

The meeting will use different methods for conducting discussions and achieving proposed results. These include presentation of slides in plenary followed by discussions, panel discussion and group work. Depending on the topic to be addressed, all the four or three Networks will meet together and at times each Network will hold its own internal meetings.

 LIST OF PARTICIPANTS

All members of the four Networks (i.e. Epidemiology, laboratory, directors of veterinary services and animal production) will be participating in the meeting. International and regional partners such as the OIE, AU-IBAR, USAID, USDA/APHIS, World Bank, WAHO will also be invited to the meeting. Representatives of on-going livestock projects in ECOWAS region will be also invited to the meeting to share information on their progress. Producer and professional organizations, as well as consultants will also be invited.

MEETING DATES

It is proposed to hold the meeting for 5 days from 19 to 23 September 2016. The meeting on 19 September will involve the three Animal Health Networks (i.e. RESEPI, RESOLAB and Directors of Veterinary Services) while on 20 July all the four networks (the three Animal Health Networks and the Animal Production Network – RESPA) will hold a joint meeting to discuss common issues. September 21 and 22 will be dedicated to specific meeting of each of the four Networks and the last day 23 September will be again for joint meeting as summarized in the following table.