Market access and trade issues affecting the drylands in the Horn of Africa

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: Yacob Aklilu, Tufts University; Peter Little, Emory University; Hussein Mahmoud, United States International University Africa; John McPeak, Syracuse University
• Language: English
• Date: 2013
• Publisher: CGIAR Consortium
• Publication Version: Final Published Version
• Copyright Statement: © 2013 Technical Consortium, which is a project of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) hosted at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI).
• License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): https://www.technicalconsortium.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/05/Brief-2-Market-access-and-trade-issues.pdf
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Technical Consortium for Building Resilience in the Horn of Africa
• Keywords: European Union; arid and semi-arid land; intergovernmental authority for development; common market for eastern and southern Africa; sanitary and phytosanitary; world organization for animal health; non-government organization; foot and mouth disease; interafrican bureau for animal resources; Democratic Republic of the Congo; livestock emergency guidelines and standards; food and agriculture organization of the United Nations; African Union
• Research Categories: Agriculture, Food Science and Technology; Economics, Agricultural

Abstract

This brief addresses the rationale and priorities for investments in trade in livestock and other agricultural commodities such as market development and access, cross-border trade, and sanitary, phytosanitary and food safety standards, to build resilience in the drylands. It should be noted at the outset that livestock trade functions reasonably well in the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD) countries. As shown by the impressive growth in the volume and value of trade in livestock and animal products in the region since 2001, markets are functioning reasonably well. A rough estimate is that trade in livestock and livestock products in the IGAD countries (Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan) equals USD 1 billion or more in foreign exchange in many years, and probably 5–6 times that amount in local currencies. Live animal and meat exports, especially from Ethiopia, Somalia/Somaliland and Sudan, have increased rapidly as has domestic trade centred on key urban markets such as Addis Ababa, Khartoum, Mombasa and Nairobi. Much of what we suggest in this brief describes actions that can be taken to ensure that producers in the lowlands of the Horn benefit from growing trade opportunities.