Kenya discusses declining donkey population with AU, Brooke East Africa

The government on Thursday engaged in deliberations to address the declining number of donkeys in Kenya.

Principal Secretary for Livestock Development Jonathan Mueke hosted a delegation from the African Union – Interafrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) and Brooke East Africa on deliberations and exploring opportunities to protect and safeguard the donkey species.

The PS expressed concern about the escalating threat to the donkey population in various parts of the country.

He attributed the threats to a surging new global craze on donkey hides and skin.

“The escalating threat to the donkey is a concern, primarily due to the widespread slaughter for its hides observed in various parts of the country," said Mueke.

He said Kenya was committed to efforts by the African governments to address the alarming decline of the donkey population.

Livestock PS Jonathan Mueke with representatives of AU-IBAR and Brooke East Africa in Nairobi on January 18, 2024. (Photo: Livestock Ministry)

The deliberations come ahead of the adoption of a report calling for a moratorium on the donkey skin trade in Africa that received the endorsement of the African Union.

The report was approved at the 5th Ordinary Session of the Special Technical Committee (STC) on Agriculture, Rural Development, Water and Environment.

According to AU-AIBAR, the report's recommendation will be put forward to the Assembly of Heads of States and Governments for adoption in February 2024.

Alarming decline

The report, ‘Donkeys in Africa Now and In The Future’, was produced by the AU-IBAR with support from the International Coalition for Working Equids (ICWE), made up of Brooke, The Donkey Sanctuary, SPANA (the Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad) and World Horse Welfare.

Several organisations advocating for a ban on the donkey skin trade claim that over the last decade, hundreds of thousands of animals have been slaughtered for their skins and exported.

It highlights the alarming decline of the donkey population within Africa due to the donkey skin trade.

Several organisations advocating for a ban on the donkey skin trade claim that over the last decade, hundreds of thousands of donkeys have been slaughtered for their skins and exported.

Driven by demand from China for traditional Chinese medicine, the trade has had a detrimental impact on both the overall donkey population in Africa and the livelihoods of those who depend on them.

In early 2020, the Kenyan government banned the commercial slaughter of donkeys following a decline in the donkey population in the country.

However, in May 2021, the ban was overturned through a legal challenge by the slaughterhouses.