Standing Wealth: Pastoralist livestock production and local livelihoods in Sudan

At a time when Sudan is once again turning its attention to agriculture, this study takes a fresh look at what makes livestock production – the backbone of Sudanese agriculture – operate successfully. While available evidence indicates that most livestock produced in Sudan is from pastoral systems, this is poorly captured in official statistics, and its importance widely misunderstood. Indeed, what constitutes ‘pastoral’ production is itself often poorly defined. In this knowledge vacuum, transformative interventions for developing the livestock sector risk being off target or even damaging. Successful agricultural development in Sudan depends on livestock, which is its most important sub-sector. Understanding how existing livestock systems – chiefly pastoral production – contribute to securing livelihoods and the wider economy is fundamental to this development.

The report was originally published by the Feinstein International Center at Tufts University.