Transhumance is a mobile livestock farming method that is based on regular, seasonal movements. The movements are mostly predictable; each year, herders follow the rhythm of the seasons and pass over the same trails and pasturelands that they already know. On the other hand, nomadism is characterised by the continual and unpredictable movements of all members of a family or a group. Most agro-pastoralists in the Sahel today practice semi-transhumance. Read on

African leaders from the African Union’s (AU) 55 member countries gathered from 22-29 January in Addis-Ababa, Ethiopia, to discuss the continent’s integration agenda. “Winning the fight against corruption: A sustainable path to Africa’s transformation” was the official topic of the 30th AU Summit. On this occasion, Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari launched the AU’s 2018 theme, fighting corruption on the continent. Read on

From 6-8 December in Cotonou, Benin, CILSS organised a conference on “Operational approaches to conflict sensitivity and prevention in pastoral areas,” which was chaired by the Beninese minister of agriculture, livestock and fisheries. The purpose of the event was to present the achievements of the Pastoralism and stability in the Sahel and the Horn of Africa (PASSHA) project. Read on

Laurent Bossard, Director of the SWAC Secretariat, and the economist Jean-Marie Cour were invited to the programme “Eco d’ici Eco d’ailleurs” on RFI, a French public radio channel, where they discussed the issue of rural migration in Africa. They lamented the often-false perception of this phenomenon, which shows how difficult it is for observers and development actors to change the paradigm when it comes to how the continent’s transformations are analysed. Read on