Toutain B., Marty A., Bourgeot A., Ickowicz A. & Lhoste P., 2012. Pastoralism in dryland areas. A case study in sub-Saharan Africa.
Les dossiers thématiques du CSFD. N°9. January 2013. CSFD/Agropolis International, Montpellier, France. 60 p.
Pastoralism in dryland areas. A case study in sub-Saharan Africa
1. Issue 9
PASTORALISM IN DRYLAND AREAS
A case study in sub-Saharan Africa
Comité Scientifique Français de la Désertification
French Scientific Committee on Desertification
3. Foreword
M
ank ind is now confronted w ith an issue These Dossiers are devoted to different themes such
of worldwide concern, i.e. desertification, as global public goods, remote sensing, wind erosion,
which is both a natural phenomenon and a agroecology, pastoralism, etc, in order to take stock
process induced by human activities. Our planet and of current knowledge on these various subjects. The
natural ecosystems have never been so degraded by goal is also to outline debates around new ideas and
our presence. Long considered as a local problem, concepts, including controversial issues; to expound
desertification is now a global issue of concern to all widely used methodologies and results derived from a
of us, including scientists, decision makers, citizens number of projects; and lastly to supply operational and
from both developed and developing countries. Within academic references, addresses and useful websites.
this setting, it is urgent to boost the awareness of civil
society to convince it to get involved. People must first These Dossiers are to be broadly circulated, especially
be given the elements necessary to better understand within the countries most affected by desertification,
the desertification phenomenon and the concerns. by email, through our website, and in print. Your
Everyone should have access to relevant scientific feedback and suggestions will be much appreciated!
knowledge in a readily understandable language and Editing, production and distribution of Les dossiers
format. thématiques du CSFD are fully supported by this
Committee thanks to the support of relevant French
Within this scope, the French Scientific Committee Ministries and AFD (French Development Agency).
on Desertification (CSFD) has decided to launch a The opinions expressed in these reports are endorsed
series entitled Les dossiers thématiques du CSFD, which by the Committee.
is designed to provide sound scientific information
on desertification, its implications and stakes. This Richard Escadafal
series is intended for policy makers and advisers from Chair of CSFD
developed and developing countries, in addition to Senior scientist, IRD
the general public and scientific journalists involved Centre d’Études Spatiales de la Biosphère
in development and the environment. It also aims at
providing teachers, trainers and trainees with additional
information on various associated disciplinary fields.
Lastly, it endeavours to help disseminate knowledge on
the combat against desertification, land degradation,
and poverty to stakeholders such as representatives
of professional, nongovernmental, and international
solidarity organisations.
Pastoralisme et désertification : un sujet controversé 1
4. Preamble
d iver sit y (of a n i ma l a nd pla nt species a nd
I
am highly grateful to CSFD for devoting this 9th
Dossier to the topic of pastoralism in sub-Saharan physiological stages);
Africa and for inviting me to preface it. tempora l aspects (a nima l g row t h rates, pla nt
restoration cycles, human activity patterns).
This short booklet clearly highlights the complexity
of pastoral systems in a simple straightforward and Spatiotemporal mobility is one of the key concepts
unaffected way—the term ‘complex systems’ is actually concerning life in such dryland areas under irregular
not even mentioned once! However, with abundant climatic conditions. Maps—which have long been
deta i ls a nd i l lust rat ions, pastora lism is show n based on assessments and interpretations geared
to encompass soil, vegetation, animals, humans, towards the rationalization of the use of such areas,
precipitation, runoff, water infiltration, complementary and on indexes such as the carrying capacity, etc.—
phenological features of herbaceous plant species, are unable to account for the temporal factors! This
annuals and perennials, shrubs and trees, knowledge, is critical because, as clearly outlined by the authors,
social relationships and cultural values of human rangelands are often imbalanced, and this aspect
societies. This is not a marginal issue—pastoral cannot be assessed on the basis of static measurements.
societies occur worldwide, in sub-Saharan Africa, of A third dimension is needed to account for the diversity
course, but also on many other continents. induced by spatial heterogeneity and temporal changes,
under the aegis of dynamic knowledge, which always
This pastoral world has, albeit not without difficulty, enhances the handing down, learning, testing and
eluded the streamlined optimum model that has been appropriation of innovations.
promoted throughout the world within the framework
of agricultural modernization in Europe or the Green ‘Traditional’ practices are constantly, and slowly
Revolution in developing countries. This model— but surely, being adjusted to cope with unforeseen
whose fundamental assumption is the uniformization or exogenous factors because in order to last—as in
and stabilization of production conditions—has all social or biological processes—it is necessary to
almost universally fostered development based on change, transform, adapt, but also to know how to resist
the genetic improvement of anima ls and plants, by inventing new things and creating the conditions
accompanied by essential nutrient inputs (livestock required to achieve what might seem impossible !
feed or fertilizer), disease and pest control products. These are good lessons to be learnt from pastoral
This model is in stark contrast with pastoralism, which societies, which are based on the mobility of people,
is actually based on diversity, mobility, adapting and livestock and knowledge, and are focused more on
responding to events. The buzzwords are heterogeneity resistance than resilience since their situations are
and dynamics! Achieving optimal results is not the never socially neutral. These situations are marked
overall aim—pastoralism involves trade-offs, biases by power relationships between individuals, social
and cunning that are used to come up with satisfactory groups, colonial or national administrations, NGOs,
solutions. national and international institutions, etc. Pastoral
communities are often marginalized—being regularly
The question is not to determine, as the authors ranked as poor according to international criteria,
suggest, whether “pastoralism is ecologically viable while also generally paying the price for agricultural
or not”! Pastoralism is not an academic discipline and and development policies—rather than being the
the problem is not to rank it within any discipline, i.e. focus of favourable public policies. The authors of this
ecology. Nevertheless, we researchers will only be able Dossier nevertheless suggest several potential changes
to understand this phenomenon by studying it through that could be made in these policies so as to make
a diversity of approaches, including an ecological one. them less disadvantageous. Moreover, the pastoral
communities may be forced to bear the consequences
It is necessary to focus on: of international discussions aimed at promoting a
dynamics (seasons, multiannual cycles); decrease in meat production and consumption, at
interactions (between humans and environments, least by people in industrialized countries. These
between humans and animals, between animals, initiatives specifically target ruminants—as if they
between animals and plants, between plants when were only reared for meat production!
they are subjected to grazing);
2 Pastoralism in dryland areas. A case study in sub-Saharan Africa
5. It wou ld of course be of interest to rev iew t he to economic or climatic (or other) risks and which
nutritional balance of our fellow citizens, as well generate inequalities leading to poverty, i.e. inequalities
as the ecological, energy, social and ethical costs of with respect to access to land, resources, markets,
some methods for producing meat from both ruminant education and health services. These are just a few
and nonruminant animals—the latter have a better examples of areas in which pastoral societies encounter
reputation in international reports, despite the fact difficulties—especially when the structuring nature
that they could be more criticized from social and of mobility, a fundamental feature, is denied: mobility
ethical standpoints! Note that both small and large essential for feeding herds and people, as well as for
ruminants are able to graze habitats where crops social relationships between scattered groups. Factors
cannot be grown due to problems of slope, elevation that force these people deeper into poverty could be
or irregular rainfall. Herbivores can wander about on controlled by reversing the perverse pathways leading
their own when seeking plants upon which to feed— to increased inequality and vulnerability.
which are made up of materials generated from solar
energy—and which in turn they transform into energy I will end by mentioning the resource issue—and
for labour for cultivation and movements, into meat, those who asked me to prepare this preamble are
milk, fiber, etc. Some ‘ecological preachers’ should look fully aware that this has been a pet concern of mine
closer at these extraordinary ruminant transformers in recent years. The resources do not exist as such!
a nd be more respectf ul of huma n communities They are generated by the use that is made of certain
which have symbiotically developed throughout the environmental elements by human groups. I refer to the
world alongside these animals, especially in desert, ‘functional integrity’ concept outlined by P. Thompson
mountain and wetland regions. In short, these areas and discussed by the authors in this Dossier. What
are considered to be too harsh for human activities may be a resource for a certain group at one time may
and are marginalized by development models based not be at another time or for another group. Forest
on the control and stability of cropping and livestock uses and resources, for instance, thus vary and are
production conditions, and thus on the settlement of variable depending on the time period, techniques
farming activities. Pastoral societies deserve better and the needs of societies, etc. The same applies to
than the derogatory treatment they often get because systems formed by pastoralists, their animals and the
they are a constant reminder that it is possible to rangelands they utilize. The resources of these systems
stand up against the ‘forces of progress’ and that other also have immaterial yet essential aspects, such as
value systems can turn out to be just as sustainable, herd management know-how, rangeland access and
or even more so, than those that are based on proven grazing rights, herd movement rights, etc., which are
scientific evidence. the main resource of pastoralism.
This report shows that science is also focused on such
situations with the aim of knowing * and gaining insight Bernard Hubert
into them, while helping concerned social groups in Research Director at the French
their contemporary transformations. In turn, it shows Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)
how this is beneficial for scientific disciplines and Director of Studies at the École des hautes
academic approaches—to focus on such systems, études en sciences sociales (EHESS)
to test their own certainties and thus generate new President of Agropolis International, Montpellier, France
knowledge, questions and new avenues for research,
which could be fruitful in terms of their potential
applications and the cognitive advances that they * as highlighted by Ovid’s maxim Ignoti nulla cupido (“there is no desire for
facilitate. what is unknown”).
In particular, research is required to reach beyond
the definition or categorization of poverty, which has
never enabled a single ‘poor person’ to rise above his/
her situation. It is essential to focus more on processes
that make some people more vulnerable than others
Preamble 3
7. Table of Contents
Pastoralism and desertification—a controversial issue 6
Pastoralism in sub-Saharan Africa 12
Desertification and pastoral livestock herding in the Sahel 32
Towards sustainable pastoralism? 44
Key points in this Dossier 54
For further information… 56
Glossary 59
List of acronyms and abbreviations 60
5
14. Pastoralism
in sub-Saharan Africa
SPECIFIC FEATURES OF LIVESTOCK-FARMING Adaptation to the env ironment: this is mainly
TECHNIQUES IN DRYLAND REGIONS adaptat ion to heat, a r id it y a nd long-d ista nce
movements (camels are highly adapted in this respect).
Very substantial mean interannual variability in plant It also includes the capacity to withstand periods of
biomass production may be noted in dryland regions, feed shortages and long periods between watering,
i.e. potentially over 60% in 1 year per decade, whereas even though this is only possible to the detriment of
it is 2- to 3-fold lower in subhumid and humid regions. their body mass (e.g. animals use part of the energy
In these dryland regions, the local rainfall spatial obtained by feeding just to move).
distribution is also highly varied. Livestock farmers,
because of the resulting uncertainty concerning the H a r d i ne s s , i .e . t he c a p a c it y t o w it h s t a nd
availability of fodder resources, are obliged to adopt environmental variations and harsh conditions (e.g.
specific livestock-farming techniques to preserve poor feed quality or exposure to certain diseases or
their production capital, i.e. cattle and ecosystems. pests): this hardiness is the result of a long selection
Pastoralism hinges on t he ma rked capacit y of process in adaptation to such environments. However,
livestock farmers to make effective use of spontaneous t his goes hand-in-hand w it h t he low indiv idua l
f o dder r e s ou r c e s s c at t er e d i n he t er o genou s production performances (fecundity, milk production,
environments. carcass conformation), offset by the number of reared
animals.
The survival of livestock and the viability of pastoral
societies in t hese rest rict ive env ironments a re Versatility: most of the reared species provide many
dependent on technical management strategies, based services, such as generating high-protein foods (milk,
mainly on: meat), fertilizer and energy (carrying, transport, water
the choice and combination of different herbivorous pumping, animal traction).
species
the use of various fodder resources: herbaceous Combined herbivorous species
plants, supplemented by forage supplied by trees
and shrubs Livestock farmers rear one livestock species or combine
the herd mobility, sometimes accompanied by the several. In this latter case, the farmer is able to take
pastoralist’s family. fuller and more balanced advantage of the available
environmental resources as each species taps a slightly
Adapted livestock species and breeds different feeding niche. The farmer diversifies the
products and services provided by the herd. This
Domest icated herbivorous l ivestock rea red on enhances the pastoralist’s capacity to adapt to a range
rangelands have acquired a genetic potential that is of different environmental and social conditions.
especially well adapted to their grazing environment
and to this type of livestock farming. This ensures the The herd composition may also change over time.
resilience and sustainability of pastoral livestock- Many livestock farmers whose herds were decimated
farming systems. Livestock farmers form their herds by the droughts have opted to rebuild them with small
on the basis of four major combined qualities (Lhoste, ruminants—this was a marked trend in the 1980s.
2007): With the return of more humid climatic conditions,
herd compositions gradually shifted in favour of cattle
Species diversity: depending on the environments (or camels in arid regions), which are more lucrative,
grazed, the resources and aims of the pastoralists, culturally entrenched and prestigious.
pastoral herds consist of cattle, small ruminants
(goats and sheep), camels and sometimes a few horses,
donkeys or hybrids.
12 Pastoralism in dryland areas. A case study in sub-Saharan Africa
17. Vital herd mobility
Domest icated r umina nts worldw ide a re able to depending on the season and the availability of water
digest quite rough vegetation because of the unique and fodder resources. Seasonal mobility, especially
physiology of their several stomachs. They can thus transhumance, is a specific feature of pastoralism in
graze various types of vegetation, even sparse or highly response to seasonal variations in resource availability
seasonal. When grass and shrubs are available, they and quality, which may differ depending on regions.
browse the best plants and plant parts, and they also Pastoralists sometimes walk long distances (even
need regular (basically daily) access to water. hu nd reds of k i lomet res) a longside t hei r herds
every year. This f lexible mobility strateg y enables
Spat iotempora l va r iabi lit y in natura l resources pastoralists to deal with the many events that may
can lead to one- to fourfold differences in fodder arise due to the hazards they encounter along the way.
availability at given sites and between years (e.g. from
500 kg DM/ha to 2 t DM/ha at the same Sahelian site This resource uncertainty and mobility goes hand-in-
depending on the year). Sometimes the herd just has to hand with collective access to rangelands. In harsh
travel 10–20 km to find a more (or less) better situation. env ironmenta l situations, resources can thus be
This variability is more marked in semiarid than in shared over vast areas when there are temporary local
subhumid areas. Cattle must therefore always be able shortages—pastoralists thus have reciprocal access.
to move to look for fodder where it is available. Note
that wild herbivores also practice different forms of For pastoralists living in sparsely populated regions,
transhumance seeking the most accessible grazing this mobility also facilitates exchanges with other
resources. social groups: selling products, purchasing cereals in
agricultural areas and other products for the family,
In a single day, the distances travelled around a exchanging services for fertilizer or transportation,
ca mp (sma l l-sca le mobi l it y) va r y substa nt ia l ly social encounters, etc.
> FOCUS | Different types
of pastoral mobility
There are different extents of mobility: Often within the same region there is a broad range of
different mobility systems that cooperate or compete
In their daily movements, the herd disperses in the for resource access. The main features of these mobility
rangeland before grouping together for watering and systems are as follows:
spending the night in paddocks. The wandering range the geographical distance of movements (from a
for cattle is around 10 km, or a maximum of 15 km few to several hundreds of kilometres, and even
(less for small ruminants). up to 1 000 km)
the social scale of movements (shepherds alone
Transhumance, or the seasonal movement of livestock, or families)
involves a change in grazing region. The herd may fixed points and links to local communities and
travel up to 800 km from its home area during some land in the usual havens occupied during the hot
transhumances (in eastern Chad, central-eastern Niger). dry season
For farmers that practice nomadism, the entire lineage seasonal grazing on fodder plants and salt cures
wanders with the herd. Nomadism prevails in dryland water resources, that must be accessible to be able
regions, whereby families move around with their herds to use rangelands outside of the rainy season period
to take advantage of grazing opportunities and water when surface water is readily available. Well access
supplies, but also sometimes to participate in markets rights are negotiated between communities during
and social networks. the dry season
markets, because they have a key role in generating
The extent of herd mobility is never steadfast—it is income via sales of animals and milk and in providing
flexible and fluctuates according to cyclical variables. access to staple cereals and other products for
From a mobility standpoint, like many other aspects, herding households
differences are never clearcut and there may be many social ties, which facilitate movements and dealing
variations within the same group (tribe, lineage, family with the different problems encountered during
group). transhumance.
Pastoralism in sub-Saharan Africa 15
19. Herd numerical productivity
The herd offtake rate, or the number of livestock used 2.0
by herders as offtake yearly, is a common indicator
used to determine the productivity per animal number
of a herd. However, the ‘productivity yield in animal
number’ of the herd, which is calculated by also 1.5
Milk quantity (l/cow/day)
accounting for herd number variations (positive or
negative numerical variations), is more representative
of the actual situation. In Sahelian pastoral systems,
the annual productivity yield in animal number of 1.0
livestock ranges from 10 to 15% on average, but can
var y markedly depending on t he env ironmenta l
conditions and the herder’s competence.
0.5
Annual and interannual production variability
In sub-Saharan Africa, the fodder quality and abundance 0.0
meet ruminant livestock feed needs during the rainy 0 25 50 75 100
Fodder moisture content (%)
season and at the onset but not at the end of the dry
season. This leads to substantial seasonal variations Daily milk production of Sahelian cows according
to the fodder moisture content. From Diop et al., 2009.
in livestock productivity. Milk production, which is
The best grass for milk production is neither too moist (very young) nor too dry
highly correlated with feed intake, is a good indicator
(end of growth cycle and straw).
of the average fodder quality (see adjacent figure).
There is also interannual variability, which depends
on the annual rainfall pattern (see figure below).
16 0.45 B
400
A
12 0.33 C
Milk prod. 300
Milk quantity (x 1 000 l)
NDVI C
Live weight (kg)
NDVI
8 0.22 C
200
C
4 0.11 100
Age
0 0 0
91
96
2
93
95
4
91
96
6 months 1 year 18 months 2 years 30 months 3 years 42 months 4 years 54 months 5 year
9
.9
ne
c.
v.
t.
g.
c.
l.
pt
DS RS DS RS DS RS DS RS DS RS
No
Oc
De
Ju
Au
De
Ju
Se
Seasonal and annual variations in mean milk production per cow in northern General growth curve for young Sahelian male zebus reared
Senegal over 6 consecutive years relative to the normalized difference on rangelands. From Guerin, 1987.
vegetation index (NDVI). From Diop et al., 2009.
Curve A: traditional herding on rangelands
A high seasonal trend in Sahelian milk production may be noted, with a peak Curve B: with feed supplementation as of 30 months old
C: compensatory growth periods
centred at the onset of the dry season and enormous differences between
RS: rainy season • DS: dry season
years depending on the level of grass production (assessed via the NDVI
index*).
As the livestock liveweight also varies according to
the season, the weight gain is irregular throughout
an animal’s life (see above figure). However, after a
shortage period and by the compensatory growth
* NDVI, or the normalized difference vegetation index, is calculated using phenomenon, calves partially catch up in their weight
satellite remote sensing data and is proportional to the green vegetation
area. In dryland regions, it is related to the active plant biomass, which in gain once abundant and high nutritional quality fodder
turn is highly dependent on the extent of rainfall. is available.
Pastoralism in sub-Saharan Africa 17