Animals Care Ethics and Development in Africa

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to show that human beings have duties (directly or indirectly) to animals. Animals occupy a prominent place in human culture and history. Animals have featured in the thinking of some philosophers and others from earliest times. But with the birth of the environmental movements and ethics, there is a heightenedu thinking about animals. Many groups and persons have proposed things like animal rights, animal liberation, moral status for animals, animal welfare, and so forth. The paper is of the view that all the issues involved in the animal debate cannot be featured here. The central concern is in affirming that animals should be cared for and that caring for animals contributes to development. Development is defined here not simply in terms of economic and physical development but also as whatever brings about the wellbeing and welfare of human beings. The paper uses a critical analytic method to show that philosophical viewpoints on animals favour animal care. Human beings have a duty to respect and care for animals. The paper finds and concludes that ethical behaviours toward animals should care for and protect them from harm and pain. The needs and interests of animals do not have to trump over the genuine needs of human beings.