Colombia forecasts increase in sheep and goat population to 6.6 million heads

With the active participation of over 150 producers, associations, institutions, and experts, led by the Ministry of Agriculture and the Agricultural Planning Unit (UPRA), a virtual presentation of the Production Management Plan (POP) for the sheep and goat production chain was held. The plan envisages increasing the sector's commodity stocks from 2.9 to 6.6 million units over 20 years.

The goal, according to POP socialization data, is to increase the number of sheep and goats in the country: from 1.8 to 4.4 million sheep and from 1.1 to 2.3 million goats.

The meeting focused on disseminating the Action Plan—a programmatic step that enables the implementation of specific policy guidelines. The need was identified for developing seven programs, 22 strategic initiatives, and 122 activities aimed at addressing regulatory and institutional, environmental, social, production, and market issues.

Per capita consumption of lamb and goat meat is also projected to increase by nearly 100%. Furthermore, lamb exports are projected to increase tenfold, and an export market for goat meat will open for the first time.

Similarly, plans are being developed to reduce informal employment in the livestock sector (currently close to 98%) and improve the formalisation of labour relations in this sector.

"This plan not only strengthens domestic productivity and consumption, but also opens doors to international markets. It is a commitment to ensuring the well-being of producers and the true transformation of Colombian agriculture," said Dora Inés Rey Martínez, Director General of UPRA.

The Sheep and Goats project is being developed using a participatory and technical approach, collecting data from documentary and economic analysis, interviews with stakeholders in the chain, and public consultation on documents.

"The action plan developed as a result of this process defines strategic action lines that will address the identified issues, guiding the chain toward achieving the proposed objectives and the chosen direction," explained Alejandro Flores Vanegas, head of POP at UPRA.

Speaking about the strategic plan, Laureano Duarte, a producer from the Camarones region (La Guajira), emphasized that the plan was developed in collaboration with sector leaders in the territories.

"Four years ago, I told people at the Ministry of Agriculture and its departments that the best way to build this plan was with us, through visits to the region, not from Bogotá. And we saw how we worked with UPRA in La Guajira, Boyacá, and Cundinamarca, understanding the reality and proposing real solutions to improve our production," he emphasized.