Practical crossbreeding for improved livelihoods in developing countries: The FARM Africa goat project☆
Introduction
Increasing pressure on land and water resources, poverty, hunger, changing climatic conditions, and pricing of livestock products driven by both domestic and international consumer demand present unprecedented development challenges for developing countries. Within these countries, intensification of livestock production using more productive livestock genotypes has been advocated as a means of improving the livelihoods of some of the poorest farmers (Freeman et al., 2007, Seré et al., 2007). However, given that examples of successful pro-poor livestock improvement programmes focusing on breed improvement for low-input smallholder production systems are rare (Philipsson et al., 2006, Nimbkar et al., 2007), appropriate genotypes for intensive smallholder production systems need to be identified and promoted. This paper presents an example of a livestock improvement programme for smallholder production systems that was implemented in the eastern highlands of Kenya by FARM Africa (an international NGO, http://www.farmafrica.org.uk) using a community-based and -managed approach. Emphasis is given to the design and implementation components that led to its success.
Section snippets
Breed improvement in developing countries
Within-breed selection and crossbreeding are the common genetic improvement methods applied to livestock in developing countries. However, past attempts at breed improvement in sheep and goats in the East African region, mainly carried out through joint government and donor-supported projects, and based on government stations have shown little success (Okeyo, 1997, Ahuya et al., 2005, Kosgey and Okeyo, 2007). In contrast, in cattle production systems where the need for higher productivity,
The FARM Africa Goat Improvement Project
FARM-Africa, which specializes in rural and agricultural development activities, implemented the FARM-Africa Goat Improvement Project (FA-GP) in east and southern Africa aimed at improving the livelihood of poor smallholder farmers. The FA-GP is a community-based development package centered on genetic improvement of dairy goats through crossbreeding, while strategically enhancing the related institutional and technical support services. The goat genetic improvement model adopted for the FA-GP
Observed performance of goats in the project area
The average flock size kept by the farmers is four goats of mixed genotypes, although some kept up to 22 animals. A sub-population of 435 flocks was monitored over two years for growth to weaning, milk production and survival to weaning. The level of performance of the purebred Toggenburg and its crosses with indigenous types for traits related to milk production and growth are presented in Table 1. It should be noted that, in this assessment, performance of the indigenous goat types was not
At the household level
The short-term impacts of the project were both at the individual household and group levels. Households were able to own the asset (dairy goats) and obtain milk for home consumption which resulted in improved nutrition and well being of the participating family members, especially children and women (Peacock, 2008). In addition, income was earned through sales of both milk and animals, while goat manure was available and used to improve crop production. Through the goat genetic improvement
What made the FA-GP successful?
The programme adopted in the FA-GP addressed real needs by supporting the poor smallholder farmers to organize themselves and obtain services through a genetic improvement programme for a species that suited their conditions.
Challenges
Despite the reasonable level of success achieved through the FA-GP, several challenges emerged that, if not addressed, could jeopardize the long-term project outcomes. The main challenges are:
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The success of the “dairy goat” genetic improvement programme in producing breeding animals has resulted in a high demand for breeding stock within East Africa. Highly lucrative prices are offered for breeding animals, resulting in the sale of a large number of young animals leaving few or no replacements
Concluding remarks
Reports from dairy goat projects indicate that dairy goats could be financially profitable depending on how well they are managed, the farm characteristics and prevailing market systems. For the very poor, who own little land that can't support a dairy cow, the dairy goat is an ideal animal for providing milk and for income generation. The FA-GP demonstrates that incomes and livelihoods of smallholder farmers could be improved through community-based livestock improvement programmes. Through
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This paper is part of the special issue entitled "Animal Breeding for Poverty Alleviation: Harnessing Science for Greater Impact" guest edited by Dr. William Thorpe and Dr. James Dargie.