Despite grain storage in sub-Saharan Africa being one of the key leaking points in the harvested cereal’s supply chain, several interventions are being rolled out to reduce post-harvest losses to at least 50% as governments in the region strive to achieve the 2014 Malabo Declaration target set by African Union member-countries. 

A study of 3,588 square kilometers of privately owned land in central Kenya offers evidence that humans and their livestock can, in the right circumstances, share territory with zebras, giraffes, elephants and other wild mammals -- to the benefit of all.

East African countries have borrowed just under $30 billion from China in recent years in what appears to be a calculated gamble to rapidly build infrastructure that will jump start economic development.

One of the most pressing issues of our time is the wild meat trade. Why? Because it’s consumed by millions and puts billions at risk from emerging diseases. It provides food and income for some of the poorest and most remote communities in Africa and Asia, yet over-exploitation makes ecosystems unstable and threatens the destruction of endangered species.

In Africa, wild meat hunting is driven mostly by protein and meat scarcity (“the poor man’s meat”). In some regions, like east and south-east Asia, it can be found in restaurants, offered as high-priced exotic delicacies (“the rich man’s status”).

But consuming wild meat also poses great dangers and challenges. The global wild meat trade can drive biodiversity loss, fuel illegal markets and spread diseases. The wildlife trade and so-called wet markets, where wild animals and wild meat are often sold, are conducive to the emergence of diseases, such as Ebola and HIV, which can be transmitted from animals to people.

These issues are the focus of a recently released landmark study. It takes a new approach to analysing wild animal exploitation: it focuses on consumption and consumers rather than wild animals or hunting communities.

Most previous studies on wild meat have been by people who want to stop it, with a handful on its livelihood and nutrition benefits to poor people. Our study, with its focus on consumption, allows us to balance conservation, community development, animal welfare and plague prevention.

We are specialists in livestock and sustainable development and authors of the report. We worked for over a year to analyse and synthesise wild meat trade with a focus on hotspots in Africa and Asia.

 
We argue that, because the wild meat trade is here for the foreseeable future, policymakers and implementers should be looking at: better management of the global wild meat trade, reducing and managing the farming of wild animals, and providing alternatives to consumption of wild meat by poor people.

We must find a way to balance the benefits and risks of wild meat consumption in a way that protects human health, wildlife welfare, and our environment.

Importance of wild meat trade
Drawing on previous studies and a systematic literature review, our report found that the global trade in wild meat is extensive. Annual revenues range from US$1 billion in Africa to US$8-11 billion from illegal trade in south-east Asia to US$74 billion from wildlife farming in China.

The volume of wild meat consumed is also significant – and often much higher than that of livestock meat. On average, African foragers consume 38kg of wild meat and farmers 16kg per year. The average annual livestock meat consumption per person in Africa is about 16.7kg.

We found that in at least 60 countries wildlife and wild-caught fish contribute at least 20% of the animal protein in rural household diets. Where poverty is high, wildlife abundant, and affordable domesticated meat and access to markets scarce, many households turn to hunting wild animals.

Not being harvested sustainably
Unlike domesticated meat, which comes from just 20 or so animal species, the wild meat trade involves hundreds of species. In Africa about 500 species are hunted, in south-east Asia about 300.

Current rates of extraction of wild meat are unsustainable, except for some small and fast-reproducing species such as rodents. Ungulates (hoofed animals) generally tend to be the most frequently hunted, followed by large rodents and primates. Near human settlements, larger bodied animals have over time tended to be hunted out and replaced by smaller species (such as duikers and large rodents), which reproduce at faster rates and thus are more sustainably hunted.

The illegal trade in wild meat is increasingly moving online, with Asia as both a major supplier and consumer. Smuggling intensifies hunting pressure, as wildlife is harvested not only for local needs but also for global markets. There is some evidence of declining extraction rates due to over-hunting, resulting in “empty forests”. While bans can reduce hunting, they may also drive the trade underground.

Climate change is already driving an increase wild meat extraction by making it harder to grow plants and farm animals. Studies show that in some critical ecosystems, such as the Serengeti in Tanzania, there are rapid declines in wildlife linked to climate change and land-use change.

Addressing the wild meat challenge
Moving away from wild meat practices in poorer countries presents a complex challenge.

Replacing wild protein sources with commercially raised livestock can be prohibitively expensive for low-income households and governments alike. Moreover, it’s estimated that increased livestock production to replace the loss of wild meat could increase deforestation and require some 124,000km² of additional agricultural land.

Some solutions do exist – but these depend on the context.

 The Illusion of Antibiotic-Free Meat

Where wild animal hunting is prevalent, such as the forest margins in Africa and Asia, alternative protein sources could reduce the demand for wild meat by providing sustainable and culturally accepted protein sources. Examples are cane rats, Nile tilapia and African catfish in west and central Africa, cavies (guinea pigs) in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and bamboo rats in south-east Asia. High-reproducing “mini livestock”, such as rabbits, cane rats, cavies, capybara and giant African snails, can provide household meat in a relatively short period. However, attempts to promote alternative animals have met with little success. We suggest paying people not to hunt or subsidising alternative meat may be more effective and feasible.

Hundreds of thousands rely on hunting wild animals. Rather than criminalising hunters or trying to turn them into farmers in unsuitable lands, it may make more sense to pay them not to hunt by giving them free or subsidised livestock meat, which they may prefer.

Promoting disgust triggered by wild meat can be a promising channel, too, for changing consumption behaviours. Societies often, and sometimes quickly, shift from finding “different” meats appealing to finding them appalling. In the UK, for example, offal was eaten by the poor before becoming a fashion-food for the English gentry during the early modern period. Behavioural science can be harnessed to nudge these mind shifts in the right direction.

This study provides new insights into the wild meat trade. Deeply embedded in human culture, hunting wild animals is unlikely to disappear anytime soon. However, sustainable practices can balance human and ecosystem health and wildlife conservation, ensuring a future where both people and nature thrive.

In the spirit of our meat guide, we at The New Food Economy are here to share insights that will help you better understand—and savor—the chocolate you spend money and calories on.

Migration, both to urban areas and abroad, risks depriving African countries of the young people they need to modernize their agriculture sectors, which are key to achieving growth and prosperity, FAO Director-General José Graziano da Silva, said today.

African leaders and their constituents seem to be having two totally divergent conversations about the issue of debt vs. development.

Parrots, with their vibrant plumage, distinctive voices, and remarkable intelligence, have long captivated the human imagination. The popularity of parrots as pets has increased dramatically over the last decade, spurred on by social media and by the exotic pet trade’s hunger for rarity. As trade has increased, so too has commercial captive breeding of these birds. And yet some researchers are asking the controversial question: Does captive breeding help or hinder the conservation of the wild parrot populations?

According to the IUCN Red List, of the 398 known species of parrots, 18 are critically endangered, 39 are endangered, and 55 are vulnerable. Parrots are among the most threatened avian groups worldwide, and many parrot species are at risk of extinction.

Among Africa’s parrot species, the African grey parrot (Psittacus erithacus) stands out as one of the most heavily trafficked birds in the world. Prized for its intelligence and mimicry, this species has suffered catastrophic declines due to illegal trapping and habitat loss. By some estimates, populations in parts of West Africa have dropped by over 90%. (Population strongholds remain in a few West African protected areas, such as Congo Brazzaville’s Odzala-Kokoua National Park). Despite its listing on CITES Appendix I, trade continues in many regions through loopholes and poor enforcement. Its close relative, the Timneh parrot (Psittacus timneh), once considered a subspecies, is also under severe pressure and now classified as Endangered. Other African parrots facing growing threats include the Cape parrot (Poicephalus robustus), South Africa’s only endemic parrot, which is Endangered due to habitat fragmentation and historical trapping, and the Rüppell’s parrot (Poicephalus rueppellii), which is increasingly targeted for trade in Namibia and Angola. While not as globally prominent as African grey parrots, species like the rosy-faced lovebird (Agapornis roseicollis), Fischer’s lovebird (Agapornis fischeri), and Meyer’s parrot (Poicephalus meyeri) are also impacted by wildlife trade, facing pressures from local trapping, habitat loss, and poorly regulated regional markets that continue to remove wild individuals despite captive breeding efforts. Without stronger protection and enforcement, several of these species risk being lost from the wild.

The captive breeding debate
It is this dire situation that has led researchers to weigh up all options in the fight to save parrot populations, with their findings laid out in a recent publication. One approach is to question whether commercial captive breeding is successful in reducing pressures on wild birds. Historically, the overexploitation of wild parrots for the pet trade has led to drastic population declines in certain species, and conservationists aim to prevent such impacts from recurring. That is why researchers from the World Parrot Trust and World Animal Protection set out to investigate whether commercial captive breeding of parrots is a plausible intervention to address unsustainable trade. The researchers sought to determine whether breeding parrots in captivity would result in fewer birds being taken from the wild. They developed a set of conditions or prerequisites that must be met before one can justify the use of captive breeding as a conservation tool. The researchers then investigated whether these conditions were being met by reviewing and collating the scientific and grey literature for 16 parrot species currently traded as pets.

The study is important, as captive breeding is increasingly being promoted, sometimes by governments, sometimes by private interests, as a potential solution to the overexploitation of wild parrots. The idea is that if consumer demand can be met with legally bred birds, the incentive to poach wild individuals will decrease. It’s a “supply-side” approach, akin to farming rhinos to harvest their horns and reduce illegal trade in horn.

 
Fischer’s lovebirds in a breeding aviary. These lovebirds are commonly linked to wildlife trade concerns due to ongoing wild capture and habitat decline
However, as the study itself notes, this premise is riddled with untested assumptions, and there’s very little empirical evidence showing that captive breeding reliably reduces pressure on wild populations, especially in the parrot trade. What’s more, there’s growing concern that the mere presence of legal markets provides cover for laundering wild-caught birds.

Captive breeding may fuel, not curb, trade in parrots
As researchers unpacked the evidence for whether captive breeding could offset demand on wild populations, they found that the captive-bred parrot trade is stimulating and facilitating trade in wild-sourced parrots, rather than hindering it.

One of the key considerations highlighted in the review is that parrots are high-maintenance creatures, and some species may take years to mature sexually. This challenges the assumption that breeding is a more cost-effective solution for traders – it is not more cost-effective than sourcing birds from the wild. For those illegally trading wild birds, illegal capture incurs few upfront costs.

Captive breeding costs include the authorities’ expenses for monitoring and regulation. Without this regulatory control, there would be no way to verify that breeding stock is not being taken from wild parrots.

  Africa's Parrots-

Regulatory failure and laundering risks
For captive breeding to be considered as an effective conservation measure for protecting wild birds, the scenario would need to ensure no wild birds be removed from the wild for any reason. This criterion has been repeatedly broken by captive breeders removing wild birds for restocking or improving genetic breeding stock. Furthermore, wild birds are often captured or poached under the guise of captive breeding programs, an unintended consequence with a negative impact on wild populations. Commercial captive breeding would need to be governed by adequate regulatory measures to prevent laundering, and this level of control is often lacking in many countries.

Demand uncertainty and market gaps
The researchers also considered whether consumers preferred captive-bred parrots to wild-caught parrots (much like the question of whether farming of rhinos for their horns could prevent illegal trade in wild rhino horn). They did not have enough data to conclude whether this held, but calculated that it could have a significant impact on the demand side of the pet trade. This gap was one of many significant knowledge gaps that need to be addressed before breeding is even considered as an effective conservation measure.

Even in cases where researchers identified that quick-breeding parakeets and cockatiels could be bred in sufficient quantity to supply and even exceed demand, this was only applicable within domestic, low-value markets. Furthermore, this scenario does not address illegal trade of rarer, high-value species.

Rosy-faced lovebirds, while less targeted in the illegal trade due to their wide availability through captive breeding, are a major part of the broader pet market landscape
There were also unintended consequences of captive breeding. The study also re-emphasises that legitimising the pet trade can stimulate demand on both wild and captive populations. The researchers warned that large-scale captive breeding may inadvertently boost wild capture, highlighting significant unknowns: productivity data, scale in Asian markets, and profitability under strong oversight remain lacking.

Illegal trade in parrots persists
Despite some captive‐breeding efforts, the illegal parrot trade remains rampant. In 2024, seizures included 60 parrots in Indonesia, 36 African greys in Nigeria, and over 12,000 in the DRC. Bolivia alone loses approximately 22,000 wild parrots annually to the pet trade. This underscores that trafficking continues unabated, with wildlife crime valued at roughly $20 billion/year. However, tackling enforcement has gained a digital boost: advanced AI methods (such as language-learning models and image-recognition models) are now capable of detecting illegal wildlife trade advertisements online, offering a promising new weapon against clandestine sales.

On another hopeful note, some source nations are taking serious steps: in April 2025, DRC’s Tshopo Province imposed a ban on wild-caught African grey parrots, a major blow to traffickers using river and airport routes. However, the efficacy of this measure will depend on consistent enforcement.

Rethinking conservation priorities
The authors conclude that the efficacy of captive breeding in reducing pet-trade pressures on wild populations is difficult to prove. They affirm that the conditions for it to work are rarely met and that, in many cases, captive breeding exacerbates the problem. Still, the fact that the conversation is happening at all is a signal of how deeply the commodification of wildlife has permeated conservation discourse.

Wild Cape parrots in flight
The study recommends that decision-makers review captive breeding policies carefully before committing parrot species conservation to interventions with uncertain outcomes.

Furthermore, beyond considering captive breeding as a far-fetched conservation tool, the survival of parrots in the wild depends on meaningful habitat protection, strong law enforcement, and a societal shift away from treating wildlife as novelty pets.

The arguments on all sides of the ongoing trade confrontation between the United States and China are by now well known. American, European, and Asian pundits and prognosticators have all weighed in, and predictions abound of the ultimate outcome of the Trump administration’s gambit to restructure the U.S.-China trade relationship.

But what of those countries that might be considered “innocent bystanders,” who may be either beneficiaries or victims in a trade war over which they have little control, and no direct involvement?

Many of those “bystander” countries are in Africa, a continent that is seeing an explosion of interest and investment from China, while at the same time, according to the Brookings Institution, the United States remains Africa’s largest investor. What are the concerns, and views from African experts?

Enjoying this article? Click here to subscribe for full access. Just $5 a month.A snapshot of three African voices, and a banker in Hong Kong, help gauge the diverse sentiments being felt across the continent as Africa, once again, feels the repercussions from a great power contest.

For some in landlocked Uganda, there is fear of exploitation of the domestic economy by Chinese exporters.

Quoted in the The Daily Monitor, Uganda’s most widely read English-language online daily, economist and Makerere University lecturer Fred Muhumuza says that China will be aggressive in looking for replacement markets outside of the United States. This will result in China “dumping its products very cheaply into the Ugandan market to try and consolidate what it has lost in [the] USA market,” he predicts.

“This will have a negative impact on our local products and manufacturing sector since we may not have the capacity for trade protectionism here as the USA does,” continues Muhumuza.

Samuel Alemu sees yet another negative consequence of the trade war. The Harvard-educated lawyer, writing in Ethiopia’s The Reporter, suggests that “When China-manufactured goods face tariffs, they are likely to end up in the domestic market, curbing the pace of domestic economic growth and reducing export opportunities for countries sending their goods to China.” Given the challenges in involved, “Ethiopia will have to be particularly creative using the trade war between the US and China as a trade benefit,” Alemu writers.

Ethiopia’s economy is in a period of transition; much has been privatized, but major sectors remain under government control, such as financial services and telecommunications.  Alemu sees the trade war as an incentive to continue economic reforms: “[I]t is the moment of truth for Ethiopia to rethink its trade practices and become a full participant of international and global trade to benefit from [the] U.S.-China trade war.”

On the other hand, a leading authority in Nigeria, Africa’s largest country by population, finds opportunity for his country as a result of the trade war.

If one casts the trade war as simply a confrontation between the world’s two largest economies, then the trade war “would impact the global economy negatively,” Director General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry Muda Yusuf told This Day Live.

But, he continues, out of this comes a positive opportunity for Nigeria.

Increased tariffs on Chinese goods going into the United States “will create supply gaps in the U.S. market.” In other words, exports from other countries become “more competitive” thanks to the tariffs on China. Yusuf sees this as an advantage favoring Nigeria.

Southern Africa is expected to receive erratic rainfall in the 2018/19 agricultural season, according to the latest outlook produced by regional climate experts.

Deutsche Bank and South Africa’s Standard Bank have agreed to co-operate under a US-led guarantee programme to promote US agricultural exports.

To better support farmers poised to become the commercial farmers of tomorrow, AFGRI Group Holdings (AGH) and its invested company focused on agriculture, AFGRI, have enhanced on a concept that has made a massive impact over the past five years in farmer development.

“That’s fresh, just a few hours old,” says Kris Everatt, pointing at a clear print of a lion’s paw in the hot dust. “It’s the ghost pride.”

A new study has found that outdated, colonial-era water permit systems across Africa are unintentionally criminalising millions of small farmers who can’t obtain permits. This undermines efforts to boost farming production and meet economic growth goals.

As project sponsors, borrowers, lenders and investors gathered at the Africa Investment Forum to make deals on investment opportunities, leaders of the continent’s  top agribusiness companies shared their thoughts on the future of the industry.

African cities, according to a World Bank report, are home to 472-million people — almost half of Africa’s total population. This number is expected to double by 2050.

China’s increased lending to governments in Sub-Saharan Africa has the potential to support economic growth, but also amplifies credit risks for countries with already high debt burdens and deteriorating external positions, Moody’s Investors Service said in a report today.

The Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) has released its 2017/2018 integrated report which, for the first time, is supplemented by additional digital content about the organisation’s work. CEO Yolan Friedmann has penned an insightful opener, addressing the issues surrounding illegal wildlife trade.

Innovation is a critical part Africa’s DNA, but it only plays a part in shaping the continent’s narrative when the world becomes aware of it. This is where tactical communication is paramount in disseminating information about the continent’s progress, so that the right people join the journey in supporting and investing in innovation.