Economic performance and associated characteristics of gross margin in peri-urban dairy camel farms around Nouakchott, Mauritania

Camel farming occupies a growing place in the Mauritanian pastoral economy. The profitability of camel milk production, particularly in peri-urban systems around major cities, remains poorly documented, despite the country’s persistent dependence on dairy imports. This study aimed to assess the economic performance of peri-urban dairy camel farms and to identify the technical and socio-economic characteristics associated with their gross margin. Data were collected from 60 camel milk producer-traders distributed across four peri-urban roadside axes of Nouakchott; 59 farms with complete records were retained for analysis. These data were recorded using a semi-structured questionnaire (April-May 2024) and then analyzed by descriptive statistics, correlation analysis and standardized multiple linear regression. Results show that the farms generated an average annual gross margin of 355,588 MRU (∼9,000 USD) per farmer, generated mainly by milk sales (65% of revenue) and constrained mainly by feed costs (73% of expenditure). Multiple regression showed that gross margin per lactating camel increased significantly with the proportion of milk marketed, lactation length and daily milk yield (adjusted R 2 = 0.20, p = 0.007), whereas herd size, camel type and farmers’ education level had no significant effect on gross margin per animal, indicating that profitability per lactating camel was associated with milk collection and lactation management rather than with herd expansion; sensitivity analyses showed that herd size nonetheless remained significantly associated with total farm income, indicating that its irrelevance is specific to per-animal profitability rather than to farm income as a whole. These findings suggest that extension and investment programs targeting peri-urban dairy camel farming should prioritize improving milk collection, market access and lactation management rather than herd-size growth, in order to strengthen the economic resilience of camel-farming households in Mauritania.