North and West African nations have initiated tracking measures to modernise animal health management, improve cross-border disease surveillance, and secure broader global market access. 

According to state and regional reports, Nigeria, Morocco, and Ghana are actively executing independent and collective digital frameworks, including an ECOWAS regional roadmap, Nigeria’s National Livestock Information Management System (NLIMS), and a statutory animal database in Morocco, to establish structured tracking networks across the sub-regions.

The regional movement gained significant momentum in Lomé, Togo, where the ECOWAS Regional Veterinary Committee concluded its eighth annual meeting. 

Bringing together nearly 60 veterinary directors, national association presidents, and financial partners, the three-day convention addressed deep operational hurdles, including limited rural digital network coverage, unreliable data collection, rural insecurity, and fragmented border controls.

The delegation adopted a coordinated regional roadmap under the leadership of Dr Eugène Kouassi Koffi of the Regional Animal Health Centre and Togo’s agricultural official, Mr Konlani Dindiogue. 

The policy push was backed by a 172 million CFA franc laboratory equipment donation from ECOWAS Commissioner Dr Kalilou Sylla to the LACOMEV laboratory in Dakar, Senegal, designed to monitor chemical and veterinary medicine residues in meat, milk, and eggs across the sub-region.

Simultaneously, Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Livestock Development has validated its first centralised digital data warehouse in Abuja to eliminate data fragmentation. 

Representing the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr Chinyere Ijeoma Akujobi, the Director of Planning, Research and Statistics, Mr Stephen Ohaeri, explained that the new system integrates mobile and web-based tools to track animal populations, production cycles, and health trends. 

This digital infrastructure is designed to provide clean, unified data to help government agencies track local herds, combat livestock theft, and create a transparent environment that attracts foreign agribusiness investments.

Further north, Morocco has established its own strict tracking rules through formal legislation. 

The Moroccan House of Representatives passed Bill 19.25, establishing a national database and mandatory declaration framework for managing stray animals and regulating the responsibilities of owners. 

Supported by 74 votes in favour and 21 abstentions, the law draws directly on guidelines from the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH). 

Government spokesperson Mustapha Baitas confirmed that the legislation provides uniform legal mechanisms to manage public health risks and livestock identification, replacing the inconsistent municipal systems that previously managed stray populations.

Source: The Nation Online
Image Credit: RealNews