GALVmed participated in the 9th Ministerial Conference of Ministers responsible for Animal Resources in Africa, held in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire from 16th to 19th April.
The theme of the event was: Investing in Livestock to Accelerate Regional integration and Prosperity in the context of African Renaissance. Its main objectives were to review progress made since the last Conference of Ministers which was held in Entebbe, Uganda in May 2010. Organised by the AUC through the African Union – Interafrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR), the conference also considered current issues related to the development and utilisation of animal resources in Africa.
At the invitation of the Commissioner of the African Union Commission, Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture (AUC DREA), GALVmed’s Senior Director for Policy & External Affairs, Dr. Hameed Nuru represented GALVmed. Reflecting on the conference, Hameed comments:
“This is an important forum which surfaces the trends of African Livestock development and policies, sharing insights as to the progress made and the trends that are anticipated in the near future. We cherish the opportunity to meet with these High level experts including Ministers, Directors of Veterinary Services and Animal production, Representatives of the Regional Economic Communities and our colleagues from AU-IBAR, PANVAC (Pan African Veterinary Vaccine Centre) and PATTEC (Pan African Tsetse and Trypanosomiasis Eradication Campaign).
The Ministerial meeting was based on the objectives and progress made on the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) master plan for African Agriculture. This was designed towards food security and poverty alleviation for all Africans and in line with the principles of the Millennium Development Goals. As such, the topics addressed were broadly-based and wide-ranging with a strong focus on assessing progress made by member states, all of which are signatories to the CAADP document and process.
Since the Maputo declaration in 2003 fewer than 50% of the Member States who pledged to commit 10% of national budget to driving the CAADP plan have achieved this. Thus there is enormous scope for greater progress to be made, particularly given that of the 10% of national budget to be committed, 30% is supposed to go to the Livestock Sector.
The potential for growth and economic impact though Livestock remains high and will only increase in the future, so investment is worthwhile and returns should be exponential. The time for everyone in the sector to come together and make a case for advocacy and evidence-based policy decisions which support Livestock development is now.
The outputs of this Cote d’Ivoire meeting will feed into the Heads of State Summit to be held later in the year and we wholeheartedly endorse the recommendations of the Ministers, in line with the principles of CAADP.
Working as an alliance and through an array of Livestock health interventions across a range of neglected diseases, we are privileged to be serving the African people.
We remain committed to doing so and to building a positive, sustainable impact on livelihoods and food security. We cherish our partnerships through the African Union structures and Member states.”