• West Africa plans $345 million anti-livestock theft program

• Initiative targets traceability, legal alignment, community involvement

• FAO estimates $467 million annual losses, extremist financing links

West African countries are preparing a regional program to combat livestock theft, a persistent threat to security, livelihoods and public health across the subregion. The initiative was announced in Dakar at the opening of a workshop organized by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), which brought together representatives from the 15 member states from February 9 to 12.

With a budget exceeding $345 million, the program still requires formal approval before implementation between 2026 and 2030. It will focus on three priorities: digitizing livestock traceability systems, aligning judicial and security frameworks, and ensuring the formal involvement of pastoral communities and professional organizations in early warning, prevention and awareness efforts.

“The workshop brings together representatives from ministries in charge of livestock, agriculture, security and justice, as well as pastoral organizations, regional and international institutions, academia and the private sector, particularly in livestock traceability,” Senegal’s Ministry of Agriculture said in a statement. “This broad participation underscores a strong commitment to building a multisectoral, coordinated and sustainable response.”

Livestock theft is a longstanding and well-documented problem in West Africa. Key drivers include rural insecurity, the lack of effective traceability systems, weak legal enforcement and the involvement of criminal networks and armed groups.

In an October 2025 report, the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime said livestock theft is used by several violent extremist organizations (VEOs), including Jama’at Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin (JNIM), to finance their operations. According to the report, stolen animals are sold in the tri-border area between Burkina Faso, Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.

“Thousands of heads of livestock, stolen from conflict hotspots in central Mali or northern Burkina Faso, are transported across this zone to be sold in markets in Côte d’Ivoire and Ghana through intermediaries,” the report said. “This system allows JNIM to profit from major livestock markets in these coastal states.”

A $467 million criminal market that is difficult to curb

Efforts to combat livestock theft are complicated by the scale of the economic damage. FAO estimates that related losses in West Africa exceed $467 million annually, affecting livestock production systems and pastoral livelihoods.

Senegal has introduced several measures in response. These include the creation of a Livestock Theft Task Force (CLVB) in 2013, the deployment of specialized brigades within rural gendarmerie units nationwide, and the adoption in 2017 of legislation criminalizing livestock theft, with prison sentences ranging from five to 10 years.

Despite these steps, theft persists. According to FAO estimates, livestock farmers in Senegal lose between 22,000 and 30,000 head of cattle, sheep and goats each year, representing losses of approximately $3.2 million.

Beyond its economic and social impact, livestock theft also poses public health risks. FAO says stolen animals often enter informal and illegal slaughter networks at national and cross-border levels. These unregulated slaughter operations pose serious health hazards due to the risk of contamination from zoonotic diseases.

West African governments say a coordinated regional approach is needed to address a phenomenon that extends beyond national borders. It remains to be seen whether the proposed program can inject new momentum into efforts to tackle livestock theft, at a time when livestock trade remains a key economic pillar for both coastal and Sahelian states.

Stéphanas Assocle