Strategies of commercial poultry actors in Ziguinchor, Senegal

Abstract

The objective of this article was to describe the strategies for implanting and organizing commercial poultry farming in the city of Ziguinchor in Senegal. The dynamics and functioning of the supply and marketing channels for poultry products were part of a context of population growth, rapid urbanization and the emergence of a middle class. Poultry marketing involved several networks, channels and a multitude of actors. Interviews were conducted from 2018 to 2021 with 35 poultry farmers and 10 vendors (broilers, poultry feed and eggs) in seven districts. In the absence of comprehensive lists of the poultry sector actors and reliable databases, each interview was facilitated beforehand by meeting with experts on the subject or by word of mouth. In the context of the new challenges of local food production, the results confirm that poultry farming holds a central place in Ziguinchor. A new dynamic has been observed since 2005. It is the result of a new national policy and of settlement strategies – concentrated, sometimes relocated production and marketing sites – encouraged by the growing demand from the middle class. The results also show that various actors are driving the supply and marketing networks and channels for poultry products, thus contributing to increasing the quantities produced and income from sales.