Shepherds and their herds

According to A survey by the Food and Agriculture Organization in 2006 (Food and Agriculture Organization) Estimates of the number of shepherds around the world ranged from about 120 million souls, with about 50 million in sub-Saharan Africa, about 30 million in the Middle East, and another 25 million in the arid regions of Asia, and millions in Australia and South America .

The survey was conducted more than ten years ago and today it is estimated that although the number of nomads in Asia, South America, and Australia is much lower, in Africa their number has increased, and the estimate is about 200 million nomadic herders, where the grazing animals are: sheep, goats, cows, horses, Guanaco, llama, vicuña, alpaca, rams, camels, and much more. It is estimated that in Kenya alone there are about 15 million animals worth 900 million dollars.

Tens of millions of people live in arid regions all over the world who raise grazing animals. The grazing animals are the source of their fodder, their livelihood and are a measure of wealth and respect. In many cases in contact with other factors, the animals are a substitute for cash. The changes in the seasons and the weather force the shepherds to develop a complex of adaptations that is expressed in unique skills. The frequent climate changes make this way of life unstable to dangerous.

The way of life as shepherds (Pastoralism) in which income and social status depend mainly on animals that graze in public areas where the availability of food and water varies from season to season, and from one area to another, i.e. in constant movement in an unstable environment, migration is defined according to the nature of the shepherds as "strategic movement". Strategic since to the eye of a bystander the movement looks aimless and random, for the shepherds the movement is aimed at increasing production and the herd while consuming as much pasture as possible. When the movement takes the form of going back and forth, movement between the camp and the destination and back is treated as cyclical, such as between plains in winter and mountains in summer. For example, in Sinai there are families that sit permanently near a source of water and every day the herd goes in a different direction, creating a route that is like a star.

Constant wandering is described as a movement that changes depending on the area where there are sources of food and water, therefore grazing is a method that requires social skills and a broad familiarity with the terrain, the vegetation, the climatic conditions and the unique requirements of the various grazing animals, knowledge acquired over hundreds of years. In economic terms, grazing is a complicated exercise in analyzing and managing costs, risks and profit, but this exercise is becoming more difficult and complicated due to the changing circumstances and climate.

The main difference between agriculture in permanent settlements and grazing is that for farmers the differences between environment and environment, area to area, are a problem, while for nomads thanks to the "strategic movement" the changes are an advantage and not a problem, since pastures can almost always be found in the midst of migration.

In arid regions, the nomads tend to provide herds with better nutritional security than animal breeders in a closed and permanent farm. There is often an underestimation of these pastures, an underestimation that causes the government to ignore it. When in the XNUMXs, African countries were freed from the yoke of colonialism, there was a tendency of the development policy to "borrow" European methods with an emphasis on "modernization", the commercialization of agriculture and the privatization of grazing lands, this is when the herdsmen's contribution to the economic system stands out in the provision of milk and meat to urban settlements, such as It will also create jobs in transportation and the food sector.

In many areas of the world, shepherds are in danger because of policies that pose obstacles. For example, in Oman and Mongolia, settlers were encouraged to "give minimal support to the editor of the nomadic life", since municipal industrial plants that pay taxes are preferable. Pasture areas are shrinking due to growth in conservation areas, intensive agriculture, irrigation projects and biofuel cultivation.

According to the "African Union" (African Union), pastures make up 40% of Africa and are found in almost all countries of the continent, mainly in arid and semi-arid areas. In many cases the herders suffer from marginalization which leads to a shortage and lack of access to basic services such as: markets, roads, clean water, health services and more, a wrong policy that sees the herders as inefficient to the point of lagging behind.

About seven years ago, the African Union published a "roadmap" / policy for African herders, which states that their existence faces a series of threats such as: climate change and demographics. "It is known that in a number of grazing areas the level of poverty has increased and food security has decreased as a result of an ongoing drought." Drought consumes the sources of pasture and water on which the shepherds depend. The result is damage to the health of the cattle and the supply of meat and milk.

(IRIN) reports a persistent drought (prolonged drought) which affects the Turkana areas in Kenya, where there are about 1.5 million inhabitants of which about 90% live in extreme poverty. The drought caused an extreme lack of water and pasture, and resulted in the death of hundreds of thousands of cows, goats and sheep. In addition to the drought came the discovery of oil in the area, a discovery that led to the construction of a production and research site - the site blocks and prevents the movement of shepherds.

In some grazing areas in the world, such as the Karamoja region, herders have a history and tradition of raids on settlements and herders in which cattle are robbed (according to tradition, the cattle were mainly robbed as payment), but since the countries (South Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia) do not provide security, a phenomenon has developed (in Kenya) in which raids are carried out and organized by criminal gangs that work for the meat industry or for political opponents

Are such frictions happening because of drought or climate change? The answer to that is given in academic controversy. The evidence in Kenya shows that the herdsmen tend to fight more in times of abundance than in times of scarcity, since during a drought it happens that different societies organize themselves in mutual aid, while after a rainy period the grass grows, the animals are healthy and fat, which is an impetus for raids.

In order to achieve the main goal of "eradicating poverty in all its forms everywhere" for the tens of millions of pastoralists, governments must stop seeing them as ineffective. It is appropriate to provide herdsmen with financial support that will ensure their sustainability and prosperity.

to "unleash the potential" Published in 2013 In "Animal Frontiers" an urgent call to decision-makers to invest in herders: identification and implementation of an action plan will constitute consolidation, understanding and increase the herders' contribution to the food supply system and livelihood and nutritional security on a local and global scale.

A shepherd from Turkana tells IRIN that: without the right investments "all that will be here in a hundred years is drought and famine".

I will add that: after a long drought, rains have arrived in Eastern Kenya, rains that may cause a revival of projects to "bloom" the Savannah, to develop agro-agriculture in steppe areas on the order of twenty million dunams (20,000,000) (See here) will damage pastures and nature reserves, is this the right way? Along with the trend of vegetarianism, it is right to recognize and cherish the place of nomadic herders who utilize pit areas and produce essential products from them.