1. This study, directed at the livestock sector of the member States of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), was prepared in response to Resolution 463 "Assistance to the Livestock Sector in Africa" adopted by the Ninth Conference of Ministers of the Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, in 1983. The Resolution called upon the Secretariat of the ECA Commission to conduct, in close collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), perspective studies in the livestock sector, evaluate progress, and formulate a specific approach to the development of this sector aimed at increasing the contribution of livestock to food and agricultural development.
2. The study was planned in three phases: Phase I was exploratory and preparatory, encompassing the forms of collaboration between FAO and ECA and the outline for the major study. The main issues to be addressed in the study were identified and presented in a progress report to the 1984 ECA Conference of Ministers. Preparation of the present report entitled "Comprehensive Policies and Programmes for Livestock Development in Africa" constituted Phase II of the work. The report was presented at the 11th meeting of the ECA Conference of Ministers in 1985. The follow-up actions as proposed by this Conference together with the perspective studies will be the subject of Phase III.
In preparing the present report, desk studies and review of existing literature was undertaken by the ECA Secretariat, which also held extensive discussions with field livestock specialists working with other international organisations, particularly FAO. In addition, an ECA staff member travelled through a part of Africa and attended meetings organized by ILCA, the African, Carribean and Pacific States/European Economic Community (ACP/EEC) and by ECA itself to gather additional valuable inputs to the study. Some help was also obtained from a consultant on livestock in Africa. His considerable knowledge of livestock problems and international development assistance has been most useful.
4. The present paper has drawn upon another paper entitled "Production and Quality Improvement of Livestock Products in the Preferential Trade Area (PTA) of Eastern and Southern Africa", which was presented at the Second
Meeting of the Technical Committee on Agricultural Co-operation of the PTA in 1984. Furthermore, the deliberations of an Expert Consultation on Livestock Research and Development in Africa, sponsored by ECA/OAU in 1983 have contributed to the inputs to the study.
5. The present report attempts to formulate suggestions and recommendations on achieving self-reliant, self-sustaining and steady progress in the development of African livestock through:
(a) evaluation of livestock development problems in Africa; how these are seen by the individual producer, the government and international organizations and donors. These three groups usually pursue differring or even conflicting objectives and approaches and solutions.(b) a review and analysis of the performance of the livestock sector over the last 15 years 1968 - 1982. Based on this the pattern of livestock production and development of the African region was stratified according to the comparative advantage in breeding, cropping and intensive production as well as differing ecological and socio-economic factors. Also, factors affecting the supply and demand of meat were analysed. A review of production, consumption and trade patterns for livestock products and by-products for the same period was made on the basis of ECA country groupings of the African countries.
(c) the identification and critical analysis of constraints in the livestock sector, especially policies on land tenure, production, marketing and pricing, animal disease control and eradication policies, the behaviour of the producer; and lastly,
(d) suggested actions at national, subregional and regional levels. Because various strategies, related programmes and projects to increase food and animal production and improved marketing have not been very successful, it was proposed to analyse the mitigating factors before proposing new strategies, while recognizing that natural and manmade calamities also contribute to the poor performance of the livestock sector. However, the most significant constraints lay in the inadequacies of the policies and the actions taken to implement the desired livestock improvement measures. Therefore, to reverse the unfavourable trends, dramatic changes in planning approaches, pastoral land tenure, production, marketing and pricing policies, animal health services and the responses of pastoralists are urgently needed. These changes will entail socio-economic costs and political risks; but it cannot be over-emphasized that future social benefits will outweigh these costs. Such changes will assist in creating the appropriate framework for African countries to intensify collective efforts for greater self-reliance and self-sustained progress and development of livestock and thereby contribute to the attainment of an African Common Market by the year 1990, and an African Economic Community by the turn of the Century.
6. This paper covers items (a), (c) and (d) above while item (b) is the subject of a second volume which also contains the statistical data on which the analysis and evaluation is based. It is hoped that the discussion on the main issues will foster progressive development of African livestock and that this study will provide valuable input to the Lagos Plan of Action (LPA).
