African Union bans devastating donkey skin trade

Global animal welfare charity Brooke succeeds in securing export ban after years of lobbying

A ban by the African Union (AU) signals an end to the legal slaughter of hundreds of thousands of donkeys within the continent and it comes after years of lobbying by global animal welfare organisation Brooke.

Over the past decade, Africa has seen its donkey population decimated due to Chinese demand for ejiao, a gelatine used in traditional Chinese medicine made from boiling down donkey skins. Believed to have unsubstantiated health benefits, demand for ejiao has obliterated China’s own donkey population, leading to huge export industries elsewhere – namely Africa and South America.

On 17–18 February 2024, AU heads of state met in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for the 37th Ordinary Session of the African Union Assembly to ratify a number of motions including the ban, which was proposed by the Specialised Technical Committee for Agriculture, Rural Development, Water and Environment in November last year.

The proposal cited a report, Donkeys in Africa Now and In The Future, produced by the African Union Inter-African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) with support from Brooke, which highlighted the alarming decline of the donkey population within Africa and the devastating impact on livelihoods due to the trade.

Brooke East Africa Regional Director Dr Raphael Kinoti attended the Summit. Reacting to the result, he said: “This is a terrific moment for communities in Africa who have benefited from donkeys since time immemorial. It’s also a great moment for donkeys all over the world and for indigenous African biodiversity conservation. Donkey slaughter for its skin has had many negatives, from eroding livelihoods in Africa to robbing the continent of its culture, biodiversity and identity. We must all applaud AU heads of state for taking these bold and drastic measures for a good cause. We urge all AU members to uphold the decision for the good of all.”

Dr Kinoti was joined by Brooke West Africa Regional Representative Emmanuel Sarr, who said: “This is an historic moment. Even if it’s not the war that we have just won, we have at least won this African battle, which, I hope, will one day be global. I will be proud to tell my children that I witnessed and contributed to this moment.”

Brooke has played a vital role in pushing for this ban, thanks to its tireless lobbying of government ministers and strong work in mobilising equine-owning communities. In November 2022, Brooke was secretariat of the Pan African Donkey Conference in Tanzania, at which ministers signed the historic Dar es Salaam Declaration, which ignited union discussions to ban the trade.

Looking ahead, Brooke intends to work with governments and policymakers to advocate for the enforcement of the ban and to call for a global ban to protect donkeys around the world from this horrifying trade.