Rising prices and declining availability of donkeys are affecting agricultural communities in Ghana’s northern regions as commercial slaughter for international hide markets depletes populations of the working animals essential to rural farming operations.
The shortage has reached levels where even the Donkey Butchers Association in Zuarungu, initially opposed to conservation efforts, now acknowledges the problem, according to Professor Roger Kanton, who leads advocacy against donkey extinction in the region.
“Even to get them, the prices are beyond reach,” Prof. Kanton said when he spoke to A1 Radio, describing recent conversations with butchers who had resisted his message when he began the conservation project in March 2022.
Donkeys play irreplaceable roles in northern Ghana’s agricultural economy, particularly in the Upper East and North East regions where the animals provide transportation and farm labor for rural communities. Prof. Kanton, who worked 31 years at the Manga Agricultural Research Station, said he relied on donkeys throughout his research career.
The biological characteristics that make donkeys valuable also make them vulnerable to commercial exploitation. With gestation periods of 11 to 14 months and only 30% fertility rates when breeding, donkey populations cannot recover quickly from intensive slaughter, unlike goats, pigs, or cattle that reproduce more rapidly.
“If a donkey is pregnant, it will take 11 to 14 months, not less,” Prof. Kanton explained. “You can imagine, if you talk about a goat, in six months a goat is ready again.”
Kanton warned that without intervention, donkeys could disappear entirely from the region, accessible only at zoos in Kumasi or Accra — an impossible option for most rural residents who depend on the animals.
“How many Upper Easters can afford that luxury?” he said.
The conservation project has documented that neighboring countries including Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger have already seen their donkey populations virtually eliminated by hide traders, who are now targeting animals in Mauritania and Senegal.
Municipal officials in Bolgatanga have reported significant declines in commercial donkey slaughter, suggesting growing community awareness of the threat. However, Ghana’s porous borders continue to facilitate illegal trafficking of donkeys stolen from other West African nations.
The project, sponsored by Brook UK and operating with regional partners across West Africa, continues advocating for parliamentary action to formalize protections before local extinction occurs.
Source: a1radioonline.com|101.1Mhz|Mark Kwasi Ahumah Smith|Bolgatanga
