No abstract

We undertook a comparative analysis of (peri-)urban livestock production strategies across three West African cities. Using a semi-structured questionnaire, livestock-keeping households (HH) were interviewed in Kano/Nigeria (84 HH), Bobo Dioulasso/Burkina Faso (63 HH) and Sikasso/Mali (63 HH). Questions covered livestock species kept, herd sizes and structure, feeds used, manure management, livestock marketing and production constraints. Sheep and goats dominated ( p < 0.001) in Kano (76 and 75 % of HH) compared to Bobo Dioulasso (48 and 40 %) and Sikasso (28 and 40 %), while cattle and poultry were more frequent ( p < 0.001) in Bobo Dioulasso (82 and 69 % of HH) and Sikasso (65 and 79 %) than in Kano (29 and 20 %). Across cities, ruminant feeding relied on grazing and homestead supplementation with fresh grasses, crop residues, cereal brans and cottonseed cake; cereal grains and brans were major ingredients of poultry feeds. Cattle and sheep fetched highest prices in Kano, unit prices for goats and chicken were highest in Sikasso. Across cities there was little association of gardens and livestock, whereas field cropping and livestock were integrated. There was no relation between the education of the HH head and the adoption of improved management practices ( p > 0.05), but the proportion of HH heads with a long-term experience in UPA activities was higher in Kano and in Bobo Dioulasso than in Sikasso ( p < 0.001). We therefore postulate that the high illiteracy rate among (peri-)urban livestock keepers in West Africa does not threaten the acceptance of improved technologies and innovations supporting the sustainability of their livestock production.

Despite their contribution to food security, animal products and vegetables from urban and peri-urban agriculture (UPA) often raise public health and environmental concerns, given high use of agrochemicals, organic fertilizers and wastewater. This study exemplarily investigated contamination of selected horticultural and livestock products (milk and irrigated lettuce with a potentially high microbiological contamination; and tomato and cabbage on which various pesticides were used) from Bobo Dioulasso (Burkina Faso) and Sikasso (Mali). Samples of irrigation water, organic fertilizer and lettuce were collected from six gardens; cabbage and tomato samples were collected from 15 gardens, and samples of raw and curdled milk were collected from six dairy herds in February, May, and November 2009. Thermo-tolerant coliforms and Escherichia coli in irrigation water significantly exceeded WHO recommendations for unrestricted irrigation of vegetables consumed raw. Microbial contamination of lettuce at garden level and market place in Bobo Dioulasso, and at garden level in Sikasso was higher than at Sikasso market (P<0.05). Pesticide residues were detected in only one cabbage and one tomato sample and were below the maximum residue limit for consumption. Counts of thermo-tolerant coliforms and E. coli were higher in curdled than in raw milk (P<0.05). Given the differences in microbial load between produce of different origin and subsequent stages along value chains, there is scope for low-cost improvement of the safety of UPA smallholders' products. However, studies of higher spatial and temporal resolution along all stages of the value chains for these products are needed in order to derive respective recommendations.