Interpretive Summary: Addressing challenges and leveraging opportunities for capacity building and the sustainable development of animal production in the south

By: Youssef A Attia, Khalid A Asiry, Sameer A Nagadi, Asmaa F Khafaga, Rashed A Alhotan, Serena Calabrò, Bossima Ivan Koura, Manal E Shafi, Salem R Alyileili, Ahmed Galal, Samuel E Aggrey, Romdhane Rekaya

• Livestock production in South and Africa faces interconnected challenges spanning the environmental, health, economic, and social dimensions.
• South and African animal scientists can lead this transformation by tapping into genetic innovations, adopting advanced technologies, and improving feeding systems.
• Holistic and integrated approaches that consider the entire supply chain, the environmental footprint, and broader social contexts are essential.
• Prioritizing research and development in areas with significant effects, such as breeding, genetics, nutrition, and health, is crucial.
• Supportive policies and regulatory frameworks must be in place to promote sustainable practices and ensure animal welfare and food safety.
• Encouraging open collaborative partnerships between researchers, policymakers, farmers, and industry stakeholders facilitates the exchange of knowledge, resources, and workable solutions.
• Empowering women in the animal production sector should be prioritized as their roles in livestock farming are vital.

Introduction

Animal production in the south, particularly Africa, faces several challenges that limit productivity, sustainability, and economic contribution to local and national economies. Challenges include harsh environmental conditions, climate change, limited feed resources, diseases, antimicrobial resistance, and poor animal well-being and welfare. Addressing these challenges requires concerted effort from researchers, policymakers, industry stakeholders, and farmers. Opportunities exist for the implementation of modern genetic improvement programs, adoption of advanced technologies, development of innovative and sustainable production, feeding and management systems, and enhancement of training and capacity-building approaches. Approaches that integrate research, infrastructure development, collaboration between different stakeholders, and the enhanced training and retention of local scientists within flexible and realistic policy frameworks are proposed as potential solutions. Similarly, African animal scientists are either leaving the continent, resulting in a brain drain, or facing major obstacles to resolving Africa’s livestock production challenges for several reasons, including limited funding, inadequate research and training infrastructure, and regulatory challenges. Empowering women and smallholders, increasing collaboration between different stakeholders, scaling successful models, and engaging the youth are crucial. Historically, the livestock sector in the Global South has suffered from inadequate investment and marketing innovations. Increasing investment in this sector could facilitate the adoption of innovative technologies, boost research funding, empower women and youth, and promote infrastructure development, thus leading to more efficient value chains. However, no major progress will be made without a well-trained and engaged animal scientist community working in synergy with different stakeholders. Addressing these challenges is key to progress and innovation, fighting poverty, job creation, and creating a circular economy.

Read the full article in Animal Frontiers: Animal Science for All.