General Assessment of Animal Production in the Eastern Anatolia Region and Recommendations for the Future

The sectoral distribution of employment and GDP in Eastern Anatolia Region exhibits the character of the rural economy. In this study, the importance of animal production for the economic development of Eastern Anatolia Region and its potential functions that could undertake are evaluated. Rationalisation of the livestock sector and the measures to be taken as driving force of the regional development are put forward. As a result, livestock breeders in the region should expand their business scales and become producers for the market. Undoubtedly, increasing the welfare of livestock breeders in the region and the achievement of regional development depends on development of the livestock sector.