This session examines why pastoralist mobility continues to be undermined by sedentary bias in policy, land fragmentation, and governance frameworks that were never designed for mobile livelihoods. The panel and participants explores the policy and legal barriers hindering mobility across the Greater Horn of Africa, the progress and gaps in regional frameworks like the IGAD transhumance protocol, and concrete recommendations for institutionalizing mobility as an economic, ecological, and climate adaptation strategy across health, education, land tenure, and cross-border governance.
Key messages
- Mobility is not a barrier to development: It is the foundation of resilient pastoral systems, sustainable rangeland management and climate adaptation in drylands.
- Pastoralists must move from the margins to the center of decision-making: Sustainable pastoralism depends on secure communal land rights, mobility and recognition of indigenous knowledge and local governance systems.
- Mobility must be institutionalized across all sectors. Mobility should not be confined to ASAL or rangeland policies alone but embedded as a cross-cutting principle in health, education, water, land, and climate adaptation frameworks.
