Africa: "I like my milk local"

African rural economies have been particularly hard hit by the changes linked to globalization. In the animal production sector in particular, regional trade in animal products and imports from the global market are increasing. These changes stem from the liberalization of African economies as a result of regional integration policies and international trade agreements. Between 1994 and 2004, powdered milk imports into West Africa trebled. The problem is that not all stakeholders in local supply chains are capable of resisting such competition. On the contrary, they do not all have the same potential to respond to the new forms of competition and new possibilities in terms of outlets. Globalization thus risks exacerbating inequality.

That said, might African animal farmers be able to cope with market changes? What policies and projects could serve to ensure that African farmers find their niche on markets? Is the industrial milk collection model one that should be promoted? Lastly, in what sense does the case of the dairy sector reveal more general "controversies" surrounding the links between trade and development? These questions, which have all been raised by researchers, are to be tackled at a half-day meeting on 28 August , organized under the ICARE research project on the impact of trade globalization on territorial development in the animal production regions of West and East Africa.

At 2 pm, the travelling exhibition "Mon Lait, je l’aime local : produits et savoir-faire laitiers d’Afrique de l’Ouest "* (I like my milk local: dairy products and know-how in West Africa) will be presented to visitors. It was produced by the Institut Sénégalais de Recherches Agricoles (ISRA), in partnership with CIRAD and GRET, and is intended to inform consumers and public decision-makers about several recent research results on the topic of animal production development in West Africa. It demonstrates the wealth of local know-how as regards milking and milk and milk product processing and consumption. It is also intended to encourage a debate on the impact of the globalization of the dairy trade on West African economies. The exhibition has already been shown in Burkina Faso in December 2008 and Senegal in February-March 2009. After a spell in France (Montpellier and Paris) in September-October 2009, it is due to travel to Mali.

AT 3 pm, a conference-debate on whether milk lies at the heart of the globalization of African economies will look at three major "controversies" surrounding the relations between trade and development:
- whether markets should be opened or closed: the degree of protection or opening up under trade policies.
- whether dairy production could be intensified, on the models that could be used to intensify farms and industrialize supply chains.
- whether rural animal production has been left out of the list of development priorities, on collective action in supply chains, territorial development, and public policy-building.
The impact of importing powdered milk into west Africa will also be discussed.

* The exhibition is supported by the French Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs promotion of scientific and technical project (PCST).