The document discusses the importance of pastoralism and its contributions to livelihoods and ecosystems in arid regions. It highlights the challenges faced by pastoralists, including socio-political marginality, poor governance, and misconceptions leading to unsuccessful development approaches. The document argues for a renewed focus on pastoralism, recognizing its potential for food security and environmental sustainability in the face of climate change.

1. Why should we put pastoralism
back on the agenda ?
Michele Nori
EuropeAID E6 – Quality Support
natural resources – rural development

2. Contents
This presentation aims at answering these questions:
• Who are the pastoralists ?
• Which dynamics have characterised pastoral
regions in recent decade ?
• How could these be redressed ?
• What elements should be considered in such
process ?

3. WHO ARE THE PASTORALISTS
Pastoralist are the communities living on arid lands through
mobile livestock keeping
1) LIVESTOCK as the main livelihood source; the vital
‘technology’ that allows translating land resources into valuable
products for people.
2) MOBILITY as the way to make the best use of marginal natural
resources, while enabling their recovery through time.
3) FLEXIBLE arrangements regulating access to resources;
common property rights, negotiations
Pastoralism is an entire way of life, involving ecological, political,
economic, technological, cultural and social dimensions.

4. PASTORALISM
supports some 200 million pastoral households
covers 25 percent of the world’s land area
provides for valuable products (protein of milk & meat, fibres)
from marginal lands

5. Regional zonation of pastoral systems
Zone Main animal species
Sub-Saharan Africa Cattle, camel, sheep & goats
Mediterranean Region Small ruminants (sheep & goats)
India Camel, cattle, sheep, goats
Central Asia Yak, camel, horse, sheep, goats
Circumpolar Reindeer
North America Sheep, cattle
Andes Llama, alpaca

6. Touareg (W Africa) – Kuchi (Iran)
Photos: IFAD

7. Mongolia – Tibet
Photos: M.Nori & IFAD

8. Bedouin (Jordan) – Andes
Photos: IFAD

9. Horn & Mediterranean
Photos: M.Nori & IFAD

10. HARSH ENVIRONMENTS
Arid territories (drylands or highlands) with extreme
climatic patterns. Water limiting factor, not
allowing continuous crop cultivation.
3 main characterizing features:
- Limitations of overall resource endowment / low
average biomass production - limited productivity
- Variability of resource distribution through space
and time – patchy in time and space
- Unpredictability of resource endowment and
high degree of risk of extreme climatic events

11. Rainfall index variation in the Sahelian region.
source: Yann l’Hôte et Al.(2001)

12. socio-political marginality - 1
FRONTIER LANDS
• Geo-political borders (i.e. mountains or
deserts),
• ‘divide et impera’, nations mix and
communities divided
• Limited representativity
• Areas remote from mainstream central state
decision making – SAPs
• High Transaction Costs
• Poor access to services and infrastructure

13. socio-political marginality – 2
(MIS)-CONCEIVED AS UNSUSTAINABLE
• Economically unviable –
Herskovits’ “cattle complex”, 1926
Poor contributors to local economy
• Environmental degradation –
Hardin’s “tragedy of the commons”, 1968
Culprits for Desertification, UN, 1980s
Livestock long Shadow, 2006
Backward agricultural system*
Economically irrational & irrelevant
Environmental damaging

14. Pastoral modernization…
Pastoral development to be conceived as
the END of mobility and communal land access
(SEDENTARISATION paradigm),
And the PRIVATISATION of resources (rangelands,
livestock*) meaning the end of pastoralism.
• Unfavourable policies (land, food, trade)
• Market dynamics (decreasing ToTs)
• External appetites for rangelands – land grabs*

15. Development approaches in pastoral areas
Period 1950s to 1970s 1980s to 1990s
Focus technical aspects of efforts aimed at
the livestock readdressing range
production system management
Actions new breeds, forage grazing reserves, regulating
production, feeding ranching,
herd sizes, group ranching
supplementation, animal land titling, herders’
health / veterinary systems, organizations
availability of groundwater

16. Current trends – 1
GROWING FOOD INSECURITY
The current large number of reiterated emergency interventions in pastoral areas
stands as the best indicator of the failure of past development approaches
(Humanitarian Food Assistance meeting on 16/6/2009)

17. THE SILENT HAZARD: drought
Reported Death of Natural Hazards globally (1974-2003): 2.066.273 persons
Source Hoyois und Guha Sapir (2004); courtesy prof. HG Brauch, UNU-EHS Berlin

18. Current trends – 2
UPSCALING CONFLICT
• Poor Governance – Fragile States
• Recent trends: where civilizations clash:
Darfur, Kurdistan, Afghanistan, Somalia,
SSudan, Middle East, etc…
• But also at smaller scale: Ogaden, South
Omo, Loliondo, Karamoja, etc…

19. Current trends – 3
LOWEST HDI - MDGs
• From better off to those ranking amongst the poorest and
most destitute agriculture peoples in the world (World
Bank, 2009)
• A number of development syndromes: poverty,
desertification, famine, food and social insecurity,
migration, conflict and recently insurgency
• Most excluded / hardest to reach from primary social
services (UNICEF/WHO, 2005)
• Regions with deepest endemic poverty, and with the most
vulnerable people (CGIAR, 2010)
• Not effective integration into state and market dynamics

20. Currently HD and MDGs indexes and are at
their lowest in such regions (ex.Kenya)

21. Failure & Neglect
During the 1980s and the 1990s a series of reports clearly showed that the pastoral sector
experienced the greatest concentration of failed development projects in the world.
Livelihood conditions worsened, rangelands got degraded: Somewhere something had
gone wrong
Immediate consequences:
1) pastoralists exited the development agenda (20 years ago) - international
2) consistent retrenchment of public investments in marginal areas under SAP - national
3) undermining of pastoral resource management patterns.
Policy frames:
1) No policy (no State or neglect)
2) Unfavourable (e.g. Ethiopia, Uganda)
3) Favourable but not implemented (e.g. Sahelian Pastoral Code)
4) Efforts for implementation (e.g. Mongolia, Kenya)
The Modernisation through Sedentarisation
paradigm shifted to Disaster and Emergency

22. Recent acknowledgements - 1
• Effective way of producing food (animal
proteins) on marginal lands
• Ensuring livelihoods & food security to
most marginalised communities
• Contributions with livestock *
environmental services (tourism, water,
CO2…)

23. Recent acknowledgements - 2
• Pastoralism is not an intermediate development
stage but rather the result of a process of
specialisation in marginal ecosystems
• An effective means of coping with a variable and
unpredictable climate
• Actually the best possible system to produce while
protecting drylands
• These contributions are likely to become even
more important in a Climate Change perspective.

24. ECONOMIC CONSISTENCY
Contribution of livestock to GDP in SSAfrica
Mauri- Senegal Mali Burkina Niger
tania Faso
% Agric 70 37,3 41,6 25 29.8
GDP
Chad Sudan Ethiopia Kenya Somalia
% Agric. 25 80 35 50 80
GDP

25. …despite
• Other important contributions not-
accounted for, as through informal channels
• Only 3 countries’ PRSP indicate
investments in livestock for poverty
reduction
• Average GoV budget to the sector is far
below 3% (Maputo Decl.)
• Most of this money going to pig and poultry

26. ENVIRONMENTAL CONSISTENCY
• Arid ecosystems functioning at disequilibrium: rangelands
are resilient
• Overgrazing not a main problem, rather larger climatic
shifts
• Environmental degradation higher when mobility is
hampered / people settle
• Important enviromental services: drylands & mountains
management, water, biodiversity (i.e. natural parks)
• Extensive livestock production with lower ecological
footprint
• African and Asian grasslands have vast carbon
sequestration potential (FAO, 2009).

27. In a Climate Change perspective…
as to IPCC: increase in temperature and extreme events,
raising variability and unpredictability
• Groups inhabiting most exposed and fragile ecosystems
(i.e. mountainous and drylands)
• Potential skills to tackle CChange implications
Itself an adaptive strategy
• Many oil resources found in drylands
Competition and conflict
• Important role of properly managed grasslands as
carbon sinks as well as biodiversity stocks

28. Reverting cause - effect relationships
room for discussion
Desertification: Culprits or victims ?
Conflict: Land encroachment, frontiers,
manipulation ?
Famines: marginal lands, limited investments,
misconceived policies, unfair markets ?
CChange: doomed or better equipped*?

29. Operational implications
Cost/benefit analysis
- Political long term engagement
High transaction costs
- Importance of communities active involvement
Mobile livelihoods
- Innovative approaches of service delivery; ICT options
Access to resources
- Governance matters
Exposure to climate vagaries
- LRRD and regional approach

30. RESHAPING LANDSCAPES
triggers for change
• Population growth
• Livestock Revolution & fair market remuneration
• Climate Change
• Land grabs
• CDM and carbon finance mechanisms
• Good governance
• Political decentralization
• Regional dimension
• Effective ‘civil society’
• Developing ICTs

31. Livestock Revolution potentials MARKET High Transaction Costs
Producing animal proteins in INTEGRATION SPS: health requirements,
marginal lands quality standards, WTO / Gov
Acknowledge environmental barriers
externalities Terms of Trade dynamics
GOVERNANCE
Local, customary institutions Decentralisation Sub-dividing
Empowering communities Politicization
Reduce TCs Conflict
Options for cross-border moves Regionalisation Limited implementation risks
for grazing and marketing Problems between countries
Ex. EC, ECOWAS, IGAD Ex. Soviet Union
ENVIRONMENT
Positive impact of properly Environmental externalities Academic and political
managed grasslands on: acknowledgements
biodiversity, water & Co2 High TCs for monitoring
sequestration
Better equipped OR… Climate Change … most doomed ?
Risk-Coping strategies Loss of right and lands
Carbon-related mechanisms High TCs for monitoring

32. Thank you for your attention
michele.nori@ec.europa.eu