The European Union funded project, Pan-African Support to the AU-IBAR for a Sustainable Development of Livestock for Livelihoods in Africa (Live2Africa), being implemented by the African Union InterAfrican Bureau for Animal Resources, held its third Steering Committee on the 11th of June 2021.
More than 30 participants comprising, funding partners, project implementers and partners; such as continental network leads and Regional Economic Community focal point leads under the project, and Live2Africa Project Staff took part in this virtual meeting. The meeting aimed to hear directly from the project implementers (AU-IBAR and the Regional Economic Communities) on the project's implementation status and the review of the progress of Live2Africa since the Second Steering Committee held in 2019. The meeting also discussed financial issues, monitoring and evaluation, knowledge management, communication, and visibility under the project.
Also in attendance were H.E. Josefa Leonel Correia Sacko, Commissioner for Agriculture, Rural Development, Blue Economy, and Sustainable Environment (ARBE), as chair of the meeting. H.E reminded participants of the purpose and aim of the Africa Union Agenda 2063 with particular reference to the acceleration of the implementation of various continental initiatives, including the Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) for growth and sustainable development of the agricultural sector. She also highlighted the 2014 Malabo declaration in which he AU Heads of State and Government reaffirmed the priority accorded to agriculture through the Malabo Declaration and the subsequent development of the Livestock Development Strategy for Africa (LiDeSA) spearheaded by AU-IBAR as a framework for the development of the sector over 20 years (2015 -2035).
The European Union’s representatives at the meeting were Ms. Myra Bernardi and Mr. David Mwanji. Ms. Bernardi underlined the importance of the project in ensuring alignment to the Rider and goals towards regional livestock value chains set by stakeholders. The counterparts of the project also appreciated the project's relevance in light of increased recognition of livestock on the continent. They strongly supported the proposed extension of the project until the end of 2022.
The Steering Committee meeting participants also discussed and approved the project Workplan and recommendations for 2021, paving the way for more focused and varied action for ensuring livestock development, particularly with closer partnerships with other implementation partners. e.g. RECs across the continent.
On 8th June, 2021, the Live2Africa Project Technical Committee was held to review the project activities. A key observation noted by Mr. Talal, the AU-IBAR Officer in Charge, related to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and its impact on implementing some critical strategic actions of the project. As a result, the Technical Committee Meeting participants critically reviewed activities and proposed modalities for ensuring their completion for consideration and guidance by the 3rd meeting of the Project Steering Committee.
