Charging Bull (sometimes called the Wall Street Bull), a 3,200 kg bronze sculpture by Arturo Di Modica, near Wall Street in New York City (photo on Flickr by Randy Lemoine).

‘Africa still suffers from a lack of good quality data on livestock that could be used to measure and improve progress as well as inform policymaking processes, scientists have said.

‘Good data are crucial for identifying effective public and private sector investment opportunities, and in helping to improve the livelihoods of smallholder livestock producers in Africa, according to ‘Livestock Data Innovation in Africa‘ initiative.

‘The initiative is jointly run by UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Livestock Research Institute, the African Union (AU) and the World Bank with the support from Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

‘At a media briefing on the progress of the initiative, earlier this month (3 May), Ibrahim Gashash Ahmed, manager at the AU’s Interafrican Bureau for Animal Resources, told the media there is a large amount of data on livestock but the quality is still poor in Africa. . . .

‘And according to Ugo Pica-Ciamarra, an FAO livestock economist, improving the quantity and quality of livestock data for decision-makers, better policies and investments, will not only ensure livestock sector development and bring benefits to many livestock keepers in Sub-Saharan Africa, but also make the sector economically and environmentally sustainable. . . .

“Data doesn’t only measure progress but also improves it,” he tells SciDev.Net. . . .

‘The project is being piloted in Tanzania, Uganda and Niger.

‘It was launched in January 2010 and the pilot stage is due to end in December 2013, but will be extended to the rest of sub-Saharan Africa up to 2020.’

Visit the project’s website and a one-page brief in English or French.

Read the whole article by Gilbert Nakweya at AllAfrica.com/SciDevNet: African countries must improve livestock data, 21 May 2013.