ARC33 Special Event “Livestock Development Strategy for Africa” Opening Remarks

Excellences,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Dear Colleagues,

This Special Event, jointly organized with the AU Commission, and taking place on the margins of the FAO Regional Ministerial Conference for Africa, provides an important platform to exchange knowledge for the effective implementation of the Livestock Development Strategy for Africa, which is a guiding instrument for the Sustainable Livestock Sector Transformation.

In Africa, livestock are critical for food and nutrition security, for livelihoods, inclusive growth, jobs for youth and women, curbing poverty and contributing to a sustainable environment.

The FAO Global Conference on Sustainable Livestock Transformation, held last September, highlighted the strong contribution of livestock value chains to the Four Betters: Better Production, Better Nutrition, a Better Environment, and a Better Life – as set out in the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31.

Sixty to eighty percent of rural households in most African countries keep livestock as mobile and liquid assets, income generators for food security and nutrition, and for cultural heritage.  The consumption of animal-source food is still low in Africa but expected to increase by 2050 with the right policies in place and the investments needed. For example, per capita, demand for animal protein is projected to rise from 17 to 20 kg, mostly due to population increase, economic growth, and urbanization, and dietary change.

Achieving this demands solutions and actions leading to low-emission and climate resilient livestock systems through the Sustainable Livestock Transformation Framework. We also need to strengthen efforts to eliminate the burden of endemic and transboundary diseases, as well as zoonotic and pandemic threats.

The potential of the sector to improve livelihoods remains untapped. Maximizing this contribution requires engaging all farmers in designing and implementing solutions.

Policies and investments should not simply provide direct support to farmers, but tackle barriers that prevent them from accessing productive inputs and benefiting from business opportunities.

With regard to pandemic threats, research shows that sixty percent of emergent human pathogens have an animal source, over forty percent from wild animal species. This interconnection highlights the need for a multisectoral One Health approach to manage agrifood systems, to support sustainable production and consumption, and to prevent the next pandemic.

Building on decades of collaboration with the African Union, its specialized institutions, and Regional Economic Communities, we have jointly achieved many milestones, including the global eradication of Rinderpest in 2011.

Now, together with the World Organisation for Animal Health and other development partners, we are working towards the global eradication of PPR - Peste des petits ruminants - by 2030.

To achieve this, it is critical that we maintain momentum and ensure that PPR National Strategic Plans remain a political priority, and we need to highlight and showcase the commitment, engagement, and investment of affected countries to maintain donor and partners engagement.

FAO also supports Members to control other animal diseases that significantly impact smallholder livestock sector by leveraging domestic and multilateral investments. Together with the African Union, we are working to support a better response to the calls for Pandemic Fund proposals.

Last year, we mobilized USD 102 million in Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Togo, and Zambia. We are now working with governments and partners to increase the number of countries with solid and successful project proposals.

Development of the feed industry and value chains is critical for the development of the livestock sector. For this reason, FAO is supporting Regional Economic Communities to develop feed strategies; and we also support the Permanent Interstate Committee for Drought Control in the Sahel (CILSS) to build institutional and human capacities on livestock sector analyses, climate change, and for the development of National Livestock Master Plans and Feed Balance Sheets in the Sahelian countries.

Dear Colleagues,

We need to continue working together in an efficient, effective, and coherent manner.

I reiterate the call to our Members and partners to prioritize resource mobilization and investment to make the livestock sector more efficient, more inclusive, more resilient and more sustainable, while providing improved social effects, better nutrition benefits, and more economic return with greater equity and less environmental impact.

The Livestock Development Strategy for Africa is a major transformation instrument to guide innovative actions to achieve the sustainable development of the sector across the continent.

But we need better coordination mechanisms for its implementation and monitoring; FAO stands ready to provide the platform and technical expertise for Sustainable Livestock Transformation.

Thank you.