The objective of this study is to explore the benefits of donkeys for rural and urban smallholder farmers
in northwest Nigeria. We visited 112 smallholder donkey farmers located in rural and urban areas from
four states in northwest Nigeriathrough four focus group meetings, interviews with individual farmers
and in depth interview with 12 key informants. In addition, 80 citizens were interviewed about their
perception on donkeys. Donkeys were used more intensively in urban than in rural areas. The number
of donkeys was higher (p<0.001) in urban (4.1) than in rural areas (1.9). The number of days per week
working with donkeys was also higher (p<0.05) in urban (6.4) than in rural (2.9) areas. However, farm
sizes werelower (p<0.001) in urban (0.5 ha) than in rural (1.0 ha) areas. Farmers in urban areas received
16% higherannual income from their donkeys than those in rural areas. Donkeys were mainly
appreciated by farmers for their low purchasing price, low-cost equipment, ease of management, and
role in ceremonies. The main constraints facing the farmers were lack of information on donkey
keeping, lack of access to clean water and proper feed, and lack of money to expand the business.
About 50% of citizens associated donkeys with poverty.It was concluded that donkeys play important
socio-economic roles in the farming systems and should therefore be included in future livestock
policy planning in Nigeria.