Niger: Forced to sell cattle for a handful of dollars

Nigeriens are likely to take years to recover from selling their weakened livestock at a fraction of its normal value due to drought in the Sahel region.

The drought threatens almost 70 percent of herds, according to rough estimates from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

“It can take up to 10 years to rebuild a herd with no assistance,” head of the Niger Association for the Revival of Breeding (AREN), Dodo Boureima, told IRIN. “Next year, people will not be able to survive off their livestock.”