P
overty is widespread in Africa, but the continent is fast growing, with the
consumption of animal protein skyrocketing, in particular for relatively
low-value, low-processed livestock products. Meanwhile, in rural areas,
the majority of households are livestock keepers, many of whom are poor. This
growth in demand for animal protein can provide major business opportunities
for livestock producers, with implications for poverty reduction.
While there is heterogeneity among livestock keepers, clustering them into
homogenous groups is useful to guide policy and investment decisions that
stimulate a market-driven and inclusive growth of the sector. A small share of
livestock keepers, from between 5 to 20 percent, depending on the country, can
be considered business-oriented with incentives to expand their livestock production
and tap into the growing market for animal protein. These keep relative
large herds and derive a significant share of their cash income from accessing
and utilizing livestock markets. The remainder of livestock keepers can be
defined as livelihood-oriented: they keep animals more for the many livelihoods
services they provide — such as insurance, manure and hauling services — than
for selling meat, milk and other livestock products to the market. The reason
is simple: on average, they keep 1.60 Tropical Livestock Units (TLUs), which is
equivalent to about three beef cattle per household or about 0.6 TLU per household
member, and, therefore, they cannot derive large benefits from regularly
selling their surplus production to the market.