Deutscher Tropentag, October 8 - 10, 2003 in Göttingen "Technological and Institutional Innovations for Sustainable Rural Development"

PROCORDEL – A Regional Research Network for Livestock Development in West Africa

International Trypanotolerance Centre, The Gambia

Abstract

The EU-funded Programme Concerté Recherche-Développement sur l’élevage en Afrique de l’Ouest (PROCORDEL) has been conceived in 2000 with the objective to provide livestock owners in West Africa with improved and/or new technologies to increase livestock production and hence impact on rural livelihoods and food security. The underlying principle is the reinforcement and expansion of networks between research systems, such as the National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS) and their partners, sub-regional Research Institutions and regional research bodies such as the Conseil Ouest et Centre Africain pour la Recherche et le Développement Agricole (CORAF). The assistance by IARIs and other donors forms part of the concept to overcome the well known constraints to research in isolation, such as limited technical and human capacity and duplication.

The project links these institutions in 13 West African countries and as such touches on almost all key stakeholders in livestock–based agricultural development. Principal fields of research are Animal Health (diagnostics, epidemiology, disease risk assessment, meat and milk hygiene), Animal Production (breeding, feeding, reproduction) and Capacity building (training at technical, professional and post-graduate level). Technical research is accompanied by socio-economic investigations that are designed to put research results into the macro- and micro economic context.

Activities are mainly implemented by the NARS of the partner countries, with the support and scientific guidance of the two sub-regional Research Centres, the International Trypanotolerance Centre (ITC) in The Gambia, and the Centre international de recherche–développement sur l’élevage en zone sub-humide (CIRDES) in Burkina Faso, with input from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in socio-economics and the Centre international de recherche agronomique pour le développement (CIRAD) for provision of technical assistance. It operates under the auspices of CORAF.

This paper describes the overall project objectives, and more specifically the approach to networking in research and key outputs of the part of the project implemented by ITC in The Gambia, Senegal, Guinea, Guinea Bissau and Liberia.

Keywords: Animal health, animal production, NARS, Research and Development, research networks, socio-economics, West Africa

Contact Address: Susanne Münstermann, International Trypanotolerance Centre, P. M. B. 14,  Banjul, The Gambia, e-mail: smunsteritc.gm