Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MoARD)
Norman Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture and the
Texas Agricultural Experiment Station (TAES)
of the Texas A&M University System
Funded by USAID

The Ethiopia Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards and Livestock and Meat Marketing Program - funded by USAID - has a national mandate for increasing exports of cattle, sheep and goats from crop-livestock systems in the highlands and from pastoral systems in the lowlands. Increasing exports of meat and livestock will provide for market-led economic growth, poverty reduction and improved livelihoods in Ethiopia.

The Government of Ethiopia gives first priority to increasing meat exports in order to capture the added value from hides, byproducts and job creation. The goal to triple meat exports from less than 10000 tonnes in 2005 to 30000 tonnes in 2008. In line with the GOE priority, SPS-LMM gives priority to increasing meat exports. In addition, however, SPS-LMM activities also benefit live animal exports.

SPS-LMM promotes collaboration and cooperation among regional and federal government agencies with the private sector producers, traders and meat exporters.

Activities are organized under two principal objectives:

• Objective 1. Improve the capacity of Ethiopian veterinary services to undertake SPS and related activities in support of increased livestock and meat exports, with emphasis on establishing an internationally credible SPS certification system for meat exports.
• Objective 2. Improve Ethiopia’s capacity and competitive advantage for meat and livestock exports, with emphasis on improving and increasing meat production for export and expanding market opportunities in Middle East, North Africa and other international markets.

SPS-LMM activities involve three interconnected components:

• Sanitary and Phytosanitary Standards (SPS) - Develop an internationally credible program for certifying that Ethiopian meat and livestock exports have no or acceptably low risk of introducing transboundary animal diseases, such as FMD, into the importing countries.
• Meat for Export- Increase production of export quality meat by improving numbers and quality of cattle, sheep and goats slaughtered for export, introducing processing and packaging technologies which preserve meat quality during shipping and storage, and improving meat inspection procedures to insure health and hygiene standards required by export markets.
• Market Analysis and Development- Assess current supply, demand and future trends for Ethiopian meat and livestock and develop opportunities for expanding meat exports to Middle East and North African region and other international markets.

SPS-LMM supports the development of the technical and institutional capacity required for an internationally credible SPS certification system. Activities include evaluating technical feasibility and cost-effectiveness for SPS certification systems, training and technical assistance at federal and regional levels to improve effectiveness of surveillance, monitoring, diagnosis and reporting of trans-boundary animal diseases, and developing means for providing livestock vaccine requirements. These activities are undertaken in collaboration with MoARD, USAID-supported partners, and other organizations, including the Ethiopian Veterinary Association (EVA).

Inadequate supplies of export quality livestock for slaughter have been identified by exporters as their principal limitation to increasing meat exports. Therefore, a major assessment of production constraints and options for increasing offtake is underway in collaboration with EIAR and ILRI. In addition, technical assistance by international experts is provided to improve feedlot design, nutrition and management to increase supplies of export quality meat, plus an innovative intervention to develop dairy beef production systems in Ethiopia. Technical assistance is also provided to improve capabilities of export abattoirs to meet international standards for slaughter and processing meat products and for using cold chain technologies to preserve meat quality during storage and shipping to international markets.

SPS-LMM is actively pursuing export market opportunities in collaboration with GOE and private exporters with priority to Middle East-North African (MENA) markets. These market development initiatives will improve the financial returns to Ethiopian livestock producers, traders and meat processors/exporters and, in turn, encourage needed public sector institutional changes, including investment in animal health services and agreement on policies which enable and promote meat and livestock exports.