Livestock as part of the agro-ecosystem
In this issue, we are trying to present some articles on livestock development such as improved fodder production, indigenous livestock system and animal health care based on ependence on veterinary services and partcipatory approach.
Livestock repeatedly plays economic and non economic roles in small-farm system. Livestock production is very diverse, not only for the animal but also differ from each region depending on physical, economical, social and cultural influences. By integrating livestock and crop production, farming system can be made more efficient that lead to improved the productivity and welfare.
Table of contents:
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3 - 5written by ILEIA editorial teamFrom the Editors: The majority of small farms maintain animals. Excepting a few of the developing countries, 85 percent or more of the ruminants (buffaloes, cattle, goats, sheep) and even higher proportions of the donkeys and horses are on small farms. Animals play both economic and non-economic roles in small-farm systems. Economic returns are derived from meat, milk, eggs, manure, traction, transport, investment, insurance, fuel, by-products, skins, and hides. The proportion of income derived from livestock can be substantial, and of existential importance in the off-season period, a fact too often overlooked.
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7 - 9written by Wolfgang Bayer , Ann Waters-BayerLivestock development efforts in Africa have often involved attempts to introduce new production systems such as ranching or feedlots, and have largely failed. Greater emphasis is now being placed on improving existing production systems rather than trying to replace them.
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10 - 11written by Sander EssersA smallholder usually manages to attain a fairly high productivity. But with stilt decreasing units of land, it gets more difficult to survive on farming alone. The Mid-Country Livestock Development Centre (MLDC) searches to increase productivity within the possibilities of the smallholder and to disseminate these experiences. Main focus is on the importance of integrating livestock and crops.
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12 - 13written by Kees van VeluwThe first step to take in developing poultry production is a thorough analysis of the present poultry production system. This article is intended to explain the poultry production system in the traditional society of the Mamprusi tribe in Northern Ghana. It is based on a three month's period of research on the spot and a literature survey to get a comprehensive description. This study deals with the integration of poultry (fowl and guinea-fowl) in subsistence economy and in religious and social activities. We will see that poultry is certainly not only a way of getting financial income. On the contrary , poultry has several purposes and is fully integrated into daily life.
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14 - 15written by John YoungEvery year, during the rains, a disease kills most of the chickens around the Kamujine Farmer's Centre. The local people call it Rukora, which means 'coughing'. They avoid the problem by selling, or eating most of their chickens at the start of the rains. The disease is Newcastle Disease. It is caused by a virus. There is no treatment for the chickens once they have contracted the disease. This is just one of the diseases identified by farmers when Intermediate Technology Development Group (ITDG) started to investigate the problems faced by livestock farmers in this area.
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16 - 17written by Tjak ReawaruwIt is interesting to note that the use of the concept of farmer's local knowledge is usually confined to their production system or to be the physical environment in which they operate. Most probably this is due to the fact that underdevelopment in general is viewed as primarily a lack of so-called modern knowledge techniques and methods of production. Undoubtedly this is a narrow view and it endangers the search for viable solutions for small farmer development. Besides it leads to piecemeal solutions. Rather, we would like to extend the meaning of local knowledge to cover other elements and parts of the societal system in which the farmer functions. Below we will discuss two examples to illustrate this point: the transfer of project information and repaying credit by saving. They are drawn from the experiences of the Guided Change Project (GCP) among the Hausa of Northern Nigeria in which the author took part from 1974-1979.
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18 - 19written by Lex RoeleveldXiao Hei Lei lives with his family in Du He. Du He is a small village of 160 inhabitants located in the central Chinese province Henan on the southern fringe of the loess plateau. The landscape is characterised by rolling barren loess hills torn apart by deep erosion gullies. Apart from scattered reforested hillcrests few trees are to be seen and the range vegetation is sparse because of overgrazing. The continental monsoon climate consists of a dry and cold winter and monsoon-fed humid and warm summers, with a mean annual rainfall of 660 mm. The primary land-use form is rain-fed agriculture, with an approximate population density of 170 persons per km2.
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