Herders

Herders are people who raise and tend livestock, often within mobile or semi-mobile production systems. The term covers a range of practices from nomadic and transhumant herding to sedentary or semi-sedentary pastoralism and agropastoral farming. Herders typically rely on shared or private grazing lands and water sources, and they may specialize in cattle, sheep, goats, camels, yaks, or llamas, among other species.

Practices commonly associated with herding include seasonal migration or movement between grazing areas, routine herd management, milking, shearing, breeding, and veterinary care. Livestock provide food and products such as meat, milk, cheese, wool, hides, and draft power. Herders may live in extended family households or small communities, and many participate in local or regional markets, trading animals or animal products for necessities or income.

Socio-cultural roles and institutions around herding are often central to community life. Social status, kinship networks, customary law, and gender roles frequently shape decision making, resource rights, and conflict resolution. Mobility can contribute to social resilience and flexible land use, while herd wealth is a common indicator of social capital and security in some societies.

Challenges and adaptation: Herders face climate variability, drought, desertification, and competition for land and water. Policy changes, land-tence rights, market access, and conflict can affect livelihoods. Responses include drought management, vaccination programs, breed improvement, development of water points, and cross-border cooperation. Some communities blend pastoralism with agriculture or shift toward semi-sedentary systems as conditions change.

Regions: Mobile and sedentary herding are found widely, notably in the Sahel and East Africa, the Horn of Africa, Central Asia, the Middle East, and parts of the Andes and the Mediterranean. Historical and contemporary, pastoralism remains a significant mode of rural life and a contributor to food security in many regions.