The African Union Interafrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) is a specialized technical office of the Department of Rural Economy and Agriculture of the African Union Commission. AU-IBAR’s mandate is to support and coordinate the utilization of livestock, fisheries and wildlife as resources for both human wellbeing and economic development in the member states of the African Union. In order to achieve its objectives, AU-IBAR requires qualitative, complete and timely animal resources information for monitoring, planning and decision making. The value of evidence-based and scientific information in every aspect of development cannot be overemphasised.

In line with its mandate and Strategic Plan, AU-IBAR has developed an information system known as the Animal Resources Information System (ARIS) whose goal is to help position AU-IBAR at the continental level, the Regional Economic Communities (RECs) at the regional level and the Member States (MSs) at the local level as the core and reliable sources of comprehensive animal resources information in Africa.

ARIS is in principle a tool to enhance the capacities of the RECs and MSs to collect, collate and analyze animal resources data in a timely manner.

Ultimately, ARIS will improve AU-IBAR’s role and capacity as a technical advisory body and centre of excellence to the RECs and MSs in the field of animal resources in Africa on the one hand, and better position the RECs and MSs to design and harmonise policies and implement animal resources practices based on timely available, reliable and up-to-date information on the other.