Crop-Livestock Interactions in Sub-Saharan Africa and their Implications for Farming Systems Research

Abstract

SUMMARYHerding and farming environments in sub-Saharan Africa are described briefly. The relative importance of crops and livestock is described for each environment. A matrix of crop-livestock interactions is defined for each environment and the reasons for each type of relation are noted. Farming systems are defined as segregated or completely integrated, according to the degree of crop-livestock integration on the farm. Points at which farming systems research (FSR) might be undertaken to improve interactions between crops and livestock are noted for both systems.