Despite their importance, many African animal breeds are either facing extinction or undergoing rapid genetic dilution. The absence of regional policies and strategies has resulted in a lack of conservation protection for endangered breeds. Since the adoption of the Global Plan of Action (GPA) for the conservation of Farm Animal Genetic Resources (FAnGR) in 2007, only a few countries in Africa have formulated National Strategic Action Plans (NSAPs) for implementation. In countries where the NSAPs have been developed, low technical and financial capacity as well as a lack of information on the current population status and trends of Animal Genetic Resources (AnGR) hinder their implementation. In addition, the lack of a harmonised characterisation, inventory and monitoring methodology has resulted in lack of robust evidence to inform policy makers.

In order to breach these information gaps, the African Union Commission (AUC) through its specialised technical office, the InterAfrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR), has embarked on the publication of The State of Farm Animal Genetic Resources in Africa, which will serve as a reference material for the sustainable management of African animal genetics for food and nutrition security, enhanced livelihoods and shared prosperity of the continent’s citizens.

The collation and compilation of information for this publication was participatory and all-inclusive. The primary data and information at the national level were provided by the respective national coordinators of animal genetic resources in all AU Member States (MS) through: 1) a questionnaire prepared by FAO for the publication of the Second Report on the State of the World’s Animal Genetic Resources, and 2) a questionnaire prepared by AU-IBAR to gather information and data that were specific to the continent and which were not captured by the FAO questionnaire.

This book covers the main species that are present in Africa – pigs, cattle, sheep, goats, horses, donkeys, camelids, poultry, aquatic resources and bees. It also covers non-conventional species such as guinea fowl, grasscutter and cavies. The data and information from various MS were thereafter analysed, compiled and the first draft document prepared by the team at IBAR.