Livestock price trend analysis in Ethiopia.

1. the absence of a country-
wide system of delineating graz-
ing reserves, the encroachment
by communities on land origin-
allygazettedasgrazingroutes,the
armed gangs who specialise in
stealing cattle, the absence of a
rapid-responseconflictresolution
mechanism in communities that
attract large numbers of herders,
andthelackofruraldevelopment.
FIX THE SCHOOLS
Hadiza Abubakar, the head of
Kautal Hore Sippirdemen De
Kosam De Fulbe milkmaid asso-
ciation,isclearaboutwhatFulani
milkmaids want. Before the pas-
teurisationmachinebrokedown,
they used to process their milk
and wholesalers came to the re-
servetobuytheirproduction.“But
since the machine broke down,”
shesays,“wehaverevertedtogo-
ing all the way to town to hawk
the unprocessed milk. We do not
likemovingfromoneplacetoan-
other.Wedonotlikehawking.We
wantthemachinefixedsothatwe
can rest from all the stress.” She
continues: “And the [nomadic]
schools. Let them fix that too. We
wantourchildrentogotoschool.”
The primary school that has 120
studentsenrolledisoneopentent
and a cluster of five leaking huts
originally meant to store grain.
Theschoolisnotconnectedtoan
electricity supply.
InitsPowerPointpresentations
to attract investment to the beef
productionsector,theagriculture
ministry touts cattle rearing as a
“traditionalFulanilivelihood”,but
theinabilityofthegovernmentand
privatesectortoputinfrastructure
in place means that those using
old methods are being marginal-
ised and new improvements are
not being implemented. As na-
tional production already does
not meet national demand, there
istremendousroomforgrowthin
processing, storage and other fa-
cilities. But money alone will not
bringFulanipastoralistsmorefully
intothevaluechain.Governments
andcommunityleadershavetheir
role to play in changing percep-
tions and encouraging people to
work together. ●
Elnathan John in Gwagwalada
BAROMETER
With an
estimated
55m cattle,
27m sheep, 28m
goats, 1m camels,
2m horses and 7m
donkeys, Ethiopia
is Africa’s largest
livestock producer.
It has a number
of value-chain
opportunities that,
if seized, will power
the growth of the
industry as well as
the overall economy.
Live animal sales
in the country reflect
significant seasonal
variations. Demand
and sales are heavily
influenced by
the consumer habits
connected to
religious practices
and festivities
in both the lowland
and highland areas.
In the period
between August
and mid-September
2014, cattle prices
showed an upward
trend. This can
be attributed to
increased demand
from both the local
and export markets.
There was an
average increase
of 5% in prices of all
livestock at the end
of December 2014
due to domestic
demand during
the festive season.
During the month of
January 2015, cattle
prices recorded
mixed trends but
generally dropped
in comparison
to the preceding
month. Cattle prices
declined by 7%
in major markets.
This drop in prices
is expected to
continue until
the end of March
2015 and throughout
the duration of
the fasting season.
The internal Ethiopian
markets are
expected to bounce
back in April given
the usual seasonal
patterns and trends
in the country, while
the export of meat
and live animals is
expected to increase,
given the high
demand for
Ethiopian live
animals from Sudan,
Somalia, Egypt,
Djibouti, Saudi
Arabia, Yemen and
the United Arab
Emirates, the world’s
largest importer
of meat.” ●
Livestock
Making moo-lah in Ethiopia
Sintayehu
Alemayehu
Deputy livestock and
livestock products
marketing adviser,
Mercy Corps Ethiopia
Cattle price trends in Ethiopia
Price (Ethiopian birr)
ALLRIGHTSRESERVED
● ● ●
20,000
18,000
16,000
14,000
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
Aug.
2014
Sept.
2014
Oct.
2014
Nov.
2014
Dec.
2014
Jan.
2015
Feb.
2015
Fat grade
Moderate grade
Thin grade
SOURCE:LINKS
THE AFRICA REPORT • N° 69 • APRIL 2015
70 BUSINESS | COMPANIES & MARKETS