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The theme of the World Expo 2000 Workshop on Animal Breeding and Animal Genetic Resources (AnGRs). "Sustainable Animal Production" highlights the major issue facing AnGRs conservation and utilization pondits today - sustainability. No more can we limit our attention to productivity-oriented strategies without giving due consideration to economic, social and environmental implications of livestock conservation and utilisation (Lebbie, 2000; Rege, 1997), particularly in low input production systems. In the context of these systems, our contribution in this workshop with reference to African AnGRs focuses on: the major low input systems within which the exist; a review of their role, diversity and distribution; the current conservation and utilisation strategies and actions; the challenges and constraints, and the strategies for enhancing their conservation and utilization. These discussions, while attempting to cover Africa as a whole, draw most examples from Sub-Saharan Africa as well as the ruminant livestock.
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