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This paper aims to elucidate current knowledge of gendered engagement in and returns from aquaculture value chains. It does so by presenting a review of existing evidence on gender issues in aquaculture value chains along five key dimensions: gender division of labor, distribution of benefits, access and control over assets and resources, gender and social norms, power relations and governance.

The review shows that there is limited high quality sex-disaggregated data regarding aquaculture value chains, in particular related to the distribution of benefits in the chain. It also shows that evidence is limited regarding other aspects of the quality of women’s participation in and returns from these chains. Existing evidence, however, indicates gendered imbalances in all five dimensions assessed, with formal and informal barriers, including gender norms, limiting women’s equal engagement and returns.

Together the evidence indicates the need for research to elucidate practical ways to increase women’s engagement in and returns from aquaculture value chains through addressing formal and informal barriers to women’s control over assets, including shifting underlying gender norms and relations towards gender equality.

Read the full article:

Kruijssen, F., McDougall, C.L. and Asseldonk, I.J.M. van. 2017. Gender and aquaculture value chains: A review of key issues and implications for research. Aquaculture. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/91197

Workshop participants (photo credit: ILRI/Apollo Habtamu).

By Beamlak Tesfaye

The transformation of small ruminant value chain in Ethiopia is a major goal of the CGIAR Research Program (CRP) on Livestock. These efforts are supported by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)-funded Small Ruminant value chain Transformation in Ethiopia (SmaRT) project.

On 19–20 April 2017, a workshop, in Addis Ababa, brought together livestock sector stakeholders to assess 28 small ruminant value chain transformation interventions identified and tested and/or adopted over the last five years. The goal was to develop integrated packages of proven best-bet technological and institutional interventions for each target site.

Led by the International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry areas (ICARDA) and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), goat and sheep meat value chain research in Ethiopia follows an approach that:

• Provides a framework for integrating and prioritizing technical and institutional interventions at the different value chain stages.
• Identifies bottlenecks and opportunities for improving value chain performance.
• Analyses linkages and value addition along the value chain.
• Aims at developing market-oriented meat production with defined business models.

The project work is carried out in 8 sites representing 4 regional states of Ethiopia: Horro and Yabello (Oromia), Doyogena and Bonga (Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples’), Wag Abergelle and Menz (Amhara) and Tanqua Abergelle and Atsbi (Tigray).

During the workshop, six ‘technical market places’ were organized and participants clusters of ‘buyers’ and ‘sellers’ reviewed technologies and institutional interventions on genetics and reproduction, animal health, animal feed, processing and food safety, marketing, and gender. The interventions’ scalability and suitability were reviewed for each of the targeted sites.

Each team selected interventions which they believe are suitable for adoption in their sites. Participants acknowledged the need to integrating some of the interventions into packages of best-bet interventions. For example, they suggested that the successful community-based breeding program (CBBP) be packaged with health and feeding activities such as improving the reproductive performance of small ruminants; and urea treatment to improve the nutritive value of crop residues or increase use of dual-purpose crops. They identified improving households’ livelihood, enhancing CBBP and raising sheep productivity as key goals of the integration of interventions.

By the end of the workshop, participants had selected, prioritized and planned site-specific intervention packages to be implemented in 2017 and early 2018.

The 28 intervention fact sheets developed for the workshop are:

1.  Better hygienic practices to improve small ruminant meat quality
2.  Better hygienic milking practices to improve goat milk quality
3.  Dairy cultures to improve the quality of traditional dairy products
4.  Milk fat separation to accelerate butter production and reduce labour
5.  Pasteurization to improve traditional dairy products
6.  Simple smokers to improve traditional dairy products
7.  Thermometers to improve traditional dairy products
8.  Community-based breeding programs enhance livelihoods and deliver genetic gains
9.  Field solution for artificial insemination of sheep
10.  Ultrasound to diagnose pregnancy and reproductive disorders in small ruminants
11. Urea treatment to improve the nutritive value of crop residues
12.  Pulse crops with food-feed traits to support livestock productivity
13.  Enhanced sheep fattening with modified feeding and management practices
14.  Desho grass to feed livestock in mid to high altitudes
15.  Improving the reproductive performance of small ruminants
16. Integrated herd health approach to reduce impact of respiratory diseases
17. Select effective fasciolicides to control sheep liver fluke
18. Community-based control of gastro-intestinal tract parasites
19. Responsible use of antimicrobials in small ruminants
20. Tapping the knowledge of women in small ruminant disease surveillance and management
21. Training women in small ruminant husbandry and health
22. Gender matters in small ruminant value chain transformation in Ethiopia
23. Assessing and strengthening the gender capacities of value chain actors and partners in Ethiopia
24.  Building improved market facilities
25. Understand prevent and control anthrax
26. Coenurosis control – break the cycle
27. Reducing lamb and kid mortality
28. Smart marketing along small ruminant value chains

The interventions were assessed against the site profiles developed in the course of the project (see the posters):

Small ruminant value chain development in Atsbi, Ethiopia
Small ruminant value chain development in Bonga, Ethiopia
Small ruminant value chain development in Doyogena, Ethiopia
Small ruminant value chain development in Menz (Gera and Mama), Ethiopia
Small ruminant value chain development in Shinille, Ethiopia
Small ruminant value chain development in Tanqua Abergelle, Ethiopia
Small ruminant value chain development in Waq Abergelle, Ethiopia
Small ruminant value chain development in Yabello, Ethiopia

This activity was funded through the Livestock CRP and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)-funded SmaRT Ethiopia Project – Improving the Performance of Pro-Poor Sheep and Goat Value Chains for Enhanced Livelihoods, Food and Nutrition Security in Ethiopia.

This brief examines the experiences of scientists conducting a range of field and laboratory-based research. It was facilitated through the value chain approach of the Livestock and Fish program which focused on a specific chain in each target country: Pigs in Uganda and Vietnam, small ruminants in Ethiopia, aquaculture in Bangladesh and Egypt, and dairy in Tanzania and India.

It draws on a synthesis workshop in late 2016 where a group of flagship scientists organized to reflect on three issues:

• The benefits of a value chain approach;
• Success in bridging upstream and downstream research;
• Lessons learned from the flagship research

Download the brief:

Wieland, W., Chadag, M., Nene, V. and Toye, P. 2016. Navigating upstream and downstream research: reflections from the Animal Health flagship. Livestock and Fish Brief 28. Nairobi, Kenya: ILRI

See also these four specific briefs:

• Dione, M. et al. 2016. Pig diseases in Uganda: Impacts on pig production, human health and nutrition. hdl.handle.net/10568/80137
• Gemeda, B. et al. 2016. Interventions and tools to improve small ruminant health in Ethiopia. hdl.handle.net/10568/80138
• Steinaa, L. 2016. Pig vaccines and diagnostics for African swine fever: the case of Uganda. hdl.handle.net/10568/80597
• Kiara, H. et al. 2016. Access to livestock health interventions and products in dairy and cattle value chains in Tanzania. hdl.handle.net/10568/80633

Pig keeping is an increasingly important livelihood strategy for rural households in Uganda. Most pigs are kept by smallholder households—managed by women—under extensive systems. The pig value chain was included in the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish due to the growth potential and competitiveness of small-scale pig production in sub-Saharan Africa. Over the last five years, scientists have significantly enhanced their understanding of the composition, structure and workings of the Uganda pig sector.

This brief brings together some of the most compelling evidence and best practices in animal and human health control, specifically vaccines and diagnostics, from research by the Livestock and Fish program in collaboration with the CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH).

Download the brief:

Steinaa, L., Bishop, R., Okoth, E., Svitek, N. and Riitho, V. 2016. Pig vaccines and diagnostics for African swine fever in Uganda. Livestock and Fish Brief 26. Nairobi: ILRI.

Meat and dairy are important livelihood strategies for rural households in Tanzania. Most cattle in Tanzania are kept by smallholder households under extensive systems. Over the last five years, laboratory and field scientists have significantly enhanced their understanding, and capacity to mitigate the effects, of major cattle diseases in Tanzania, particularly East Coast fever and contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (CBPP).

This brief reports on some results from this work.

Download the brief:

Kiara, H., Steinaa, L., Svitek, N., Schieck, E. and Toye, P. 2016. Access to livestock health interventions and products in dairy and cattle value chains in Tanzania. Livestock and Fish Brief 27. Nairobi, Kenya: ILRI.

Veterinarians, laboratory technicians and assistant veterinarians from Ethiopia who were trained on field postmortem examination and sample collection in small ruminants (photo credit: ILRI/Hiwot Desta).

Studies in 2015 and 2016 identified respiratory and reproductive diseases as key constraints in small ruminant production in Ethiopia. One of the aims of the livestock health flagship of the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock is to develop herd health packages which combine disease prevention and control with improved husbandry to reduce the occurrence and impact of these diseases.

However, little is still understood on which pathogens contribute how much to production losses and contribute to risk of exposure to zoonotic diseases. Therefore, an important part of the research is to conduct systematic postmortem examination combined with laboratory investigations based on histopathology, serology, bacteriology and molecular analysis to confirm and take more targeted measures for the identified diseases and potentially inform research on vaccines and diagnostic tools.

To this end, on 6–8 February 2017, scientists from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in collaboration with the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) and Ethiopia’s National Animal Health Diagnostic and Investigation Center (NAHDIC) organized a training course for 16 veterinarians, laboratory technicians and assistant veterinarians working in government research centers and agricultural offices. The trainees also conduct field work in study sites of the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock.

The training took place at the facilities of NAHDIC in Sebeta and had theoretical and practical sessions covering three main areas:

• Field postmortem examination in small ruminants
• Field postmortem examination of aborted and stillbirth lambs/kids
• Collection, transport and storage of diagnostic specimens in the field

The trainees learned how to

• ensure biosafety during sample collection and transportation;
• perform postmortem examination in the field and collect samples from different organs;
• perform a field postmortem examination on a small ruminant’s aborted/stillborn foetus, examine the placenta and collect appropriate samples;
• identify pathological lesions of major small ruminant respiratory and reproductive diseases during postmortem examination;
• collect, preserve, store and transport biological and pathological specimens; and
• systematically document data and report the findings.

In a practical session where trainees worked in groups of four, they practised basic clinical examination, starting with history taking, restraining of the animal and general physical examination, through to clinical examination and sample collection in live animals.

After demonstrations by Ulrika Koenig (small ruminant specialist at SLU) and Nathnael Teshager (pathologist at NAHDIC), the groups examined individual organs and learned how to differentiate between normal and abnormal organs.

They found various abnormalities in the postmortem examinations, including liver fluke, lungworm, pneumonic lung, rumen fluke and white spots on liver. The trainers guided the trainees in collecting samples for histopathological, microbiological and molecular analysis. Finally, each group presented a brief report on the findings of the postmortem examination and related these to the antemortem examination findings.

The trainees are now well equipped to apply the acquired skills in the field as they carry out interventions to tackle respiratory and reproductive diseases of small ruminants. This is an important contribution towards improved understanding of the underlying causes of poor productivity in small ruminants in Ethiopia.

This activity marked the launch of active involvement by SLU in small ruminant respiratory and reproductive disease control in Ethiopia. The team looks forward to supporting field work soon.

The training was funded by the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)-funded Small Ruminant Value Chain Transformation (SmaRT) project.

Story by Hiwot Desta, Biruk Alemu, Gezahegn Alemayehu, Ulrika König and Barbara Wieland

Small ruminants contribute significantly to the livelihoods and food security of smallholders in Ethiopia. However, small ruminant productivity is very low and the contribution of disease to the problem is poorly understood. Thus, the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish, with national research institutions, tested several approaches and interventions to overcome the challenges facing small ruminant producers in Ethiopia.

Key messages from this work include:

• Involving gender in animal health research is important to understand the real extent of challenges faced by small ruminant producers.
• Capacity development and collaboration with scientists from the national agricultural research system (NARS) and extension providers helps target farmers facing animal disease challenges.
• Coordinated collaboration between laboratory and field research is crucial to the detection and identification of animal disease, control and prevention as it improves the delivery of quality and safe vaccines and other veterinary products to smallholder farmers.

Download the brief:

Gemeda, B., Desta, D., Roesel, K., Okoth, E., Secchini, F., Liljander, A. and Wieland, B. 2016. Interventions and tools to improve small ruminant health in Ethiopia. Livestock and Fish Brief 25. Nairobi, Kenya: ILRI.

These plastic containers are often not made from food grade plastic material or designed for milk handling but they are commonly used because they are more affordable than recommended metal containers.

This report presents results of field testing a new and affordable food grade plastic container (the “Mazzican“) to assess acceptability and validate its efficacy to improve the bacteriological quality of milk when it is used for handling and transportation of raw milk by agro-pastoralists and smallholder farmers.

Download the report:

Kurwijila, L.R., Mboya, N., Laizer, M. and Omore, A. 2016. The efficacy of the Mazzican for milking, transportation and improving bacteriological quality of milk in the smallholder dairy value chain in Tanzania. Nairobi, Kenya: ILRI.

More information:

Demonstrating the Mazzican [in Tanzania]

‘Mazzican’ introduced to Pakistan from East Africa to improve milk quality for smallholders

Pig keeping is an increasingly important livelihood strategy for rural households in Uganda. Most pigs are kept by smallholder households—managed by women—under extensive systems. The pig value chain was included in the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish due to the growth potential and competitiveness of small-scale pig production in sub-Saharan Africa. Over the last five years, scientists have significantly enhanced their understanding of the composition, structure and workings of the Uganda pig sector.

This brief brings together some of the most compelling evidence and best practices in animal and human health control from research by the Livestock and Fish program in collaboration with the CGIAR Research Program on Agriculture for Nutrition and Health (A4NH).

Key messages from this work include:

• High burden diseases, such as African swine fever (ASF), hinder the development of pig production, as do the low capacities of value chain actors and stakeholders in this area and the lack of incentives for them to adopt and implement disease control measures.
• Given the high socio-economic impact of ASF on pig systems in Uganda, vaccine development and pen-side diagnostic tools are urgently needed to control the disease.
• Advanced and field research are both needed to address these issues as part of efforts to transform and sustain the smallholder pig value chain in Uganda.

Download the brief:

Dione, M., Steinaa, L., Okoth, E., Roesel, K. and Wieland, B. 2016. Pig diseases in Uganda: Impacts on pig production, human health and nutrition. Livestock and Fish Brief 24. Nairobi, Kenya: ILRI.

In all the countries, a large number of smallholder farmers operating mixed crop–livestock production systems play a significant role in dairy production. In Tanzania, Kenya and Nicaragua, milk is predominantly produced by cattle of genotypes that differ both across countries and among production systems within the same country. In India, buffaloes contribute to a larger proportion of the national milk than cattle.

Information on productivity per animal and on optimal genotypes to utilize within the smallholder production systems of all the countries is however limited. Crossbreeding and artificial insemination were identified as the most widely utilized breeding and reproductive technologies. Only in Kenya is there a national organization conducting livestock recording and monitoring productivity, however, the proportion of the dairy cattle population enrolled in the recording system is small (<2.5 percent). In all the countries, enhanced and adequately planned use of breeding and reproductive technologies, complemented with the relevant infrastructure, is needed to sustainably increase dairy productivity. The capacities of actors in the dairy value chain need to be developed in order to properly implement and manage improvements.

View the open access article:

Ojango, J.M.K., Wasike, C.B., Enahoro, D.K. and Okeyo, A.M. 2016. Dairy production systems and the adoption of genetic and breeding technologies in Tanzania, Kenya, India and Nicaragua. Animal Genetic Resources 59:81-95. https://doi.org/10.1017/S2078633616000096

A farmer cares for his desho grass

In June 2016, Bimrew Asmare graduated from Jimma University, Ethiopia with a PhD in Animal Nutrition. He investigated the agronomic, utilization, nutritive and feeding value of desho grass (Pennisetum pedicellatum) in North-western and Southern Ethiopia.

The study comprised of a field survey, agronomic trials, laboratory and animal evaluation of desho grass. A total of 240 households were involved in the field survey conducted to assess the status of desho grass production and utilization.

Agronomic studies were conducted in mid and highland altitudes using vegetative root splits in randomized complete block designs to determine the effects of altitude and harvesting dates (90, 120 and 150 days after planting) on morphology, dry matter (DM) yield and chemical composition of desho grass.

Feeding and digestibility trials were conducted using 25 Washera yearling rams with mean body weight of 19.4+1.89 kg in randomized complete block designs to evaluate the feeding value of desho grass as a basal diet. Agronomic results revealed that desho grass performs well in mid and high altitude areas and is a potential livestock feed resource during early stages (90 to 120 days after planting).

The daily DM intake and mean daily body gain of experimental sheep showed significant improvement (P<0.05) with increased level of inclusion of desho grass into the basal ration. The results of the feeding trial indicated that desho grass hay can substitute natural pasture hay at 50-100% in small ruminant basal rations.

Desho grass is multipurpose (feed, soil conservation, income generation) and is appropriate for smallholder farming systems of Ethiopia.

Outputs from the study include:

1. Asmare, B. 2016. Evaluation of the agronomic, utilization, nutritive and feeding value of desho grass (Pennisetum pedicellatum). PhD thesis in Animal Nutrition. Jimma Ethiopia: Jimma University. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/77741
2. Asmare, B., Demeke, S., Tolemariam, T., Tegegne, F., Wamatu, J., Rischkowsky, B. 2016. Determinants of the utilization of desho grass (Pennisetum pedicellatum) by farmers in Ethiopia. Tropical Grasslands 4(2):112–121. https://dx.doi.org/10.17138/TGFT(4)112-121
3. Asmare, B., Demeke, S., Tolemariam, T., Tegegne, F., Wamatu, J. and Rischkowsky, B. 2016. Evaluation of desho grass (Pennisetum pedicellatum) hay as a basal diet for growing local sheep in Ethiopia. Tropical Animal Health and Production 48(4): 801-806. https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11250-016-1031-8.

 This research was partially sponsored by the CGIAR Livestock and Fish research program.

Story by Jane Wamatu (ICARDA)

For most of the vector-borne diseases, the summary was limited to narrative synthesis due to lack of sufficient data. Meta-analysis was computed for trypanosomosis and dermatophilosis while, meta-regression and sensitivity analysis was done only for trypanososmosis due to lack of sufficient report on dermatophilosis.

Owing emphasis to their vector role, ticks and flies were summarized narratively at genera/species level. In line with, 43 peer-reviewed articles passed the inclusion criteria out of 106 initially identified research reports. Data on 7 vector-borne diseases were extracted at species and region level from each source. Accordingly, the pooled prevalence estimate of trypanosomosis was 3.7% with 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.8, 4.9), while that of dermatophilosis was 3.1% (95% CI: 1.6, 6.0). The in-between study variance noted for trypanosomosis was statistically significant (p < 0.05).

Among the three covariates considered for meta-regression, only one (species) fitted the final model significantly (p < 0.05) and explained 65.44% of the between studies variance (R2). The prevalence in sheep (5.5%) increased nearly by 34% compared to goats (2.9%). The parasitic presence in blood was documented for babesiosis (3.7% in goats); and anaplasmosis (3.9% in sheep). Serological evidence was retrieved for bluetongue ranging from 34.1% to 46.67% in sheep, and coxiellosis was 10.4% in goats. There was also molecular evidence on the presence of theileriosis in sheep (93%, n = 160) and goats (1.9%, n = 265).

Regarding vectors of veterinary importance, 14 species of ticks in five genera, four species of Glossina and 4 genera of biting flies were reported. Despite the evidence on presence of various vectors including ticks, flies, mosquitoes and midges, research report on vector-borne diseases in Ethiopia are surprisingly rare. Especially considering the ongoing climate change, which is likely to affect distribution of vectors, better evidence on the current situation is urgently needed in order to prevent spread or to model future distribution scenarios.

View the article details:

Asmare, K., Abayneh, T., Sibhat, B., Shiferaw, D., Szonyi, B., Krontveit, R.I., Skjerve, E. and Wieland, B. 2017. Major vectors and vector-borne diseases in small ruminants in Ethiopia: A systematic review. Acta Tropica. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.actatropica.2017.02.015

The activity was funded through the Livestock and Fish CRP and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)-funded SmaRT Ethiopia Project – Improving the Performance of Pro-Poor Sheep and Goat Value Chains for Enhanced Livelihoods, Food and Nutrition Security in Ethiopia.

Community-based breeding programs (CBBP) were introduced to Doyogena farmers in 2013 and, since then, 487 farmers have joined up. Improved feeding and nutrition strategies for ram fattening have introduced and tested by more than 150 CBBP members who undertook two fattening cycles in 2015 and 2016. More recently, reproduction technologies including artificial insemination (AI) and estrus synchronization have been introduced to farmers. The projects are coordinated by ICARDA Scientists, Aynalem Haile, Jane Wamatu and Rekik Mourad together with Areka researchers led by Deribe Gemiyo, Addisu Jimma and Kifle Tawle.

The field day got under way with welcoming remarks from Tsegaye Bekele, Areka Center Director who noted that the 2016 field day agenda reflected the latest efforts of the research center in addressing livestock problems at grass root levels with collaboration of various local and international organizations. “This year’s program is filled with vital information for all livestock producers,” he said.

The field day attracted more than 200 farmers as well as Agricultural Bureau officers, national researchers, development workers, extension workers, and government administration officers. The day consisted of tours of research and demonstration plots, accompanied by animated discussion among livestock officers and farmers.

Participants visited farmers’ fields where they saw demonstrations of different faba bean varieties bred for their dual purpose, food-feed traits as well as fodder oats and vetch varieties. Discussions included utilization of faba bean hay as livestock feed as it is a commonly grown food crop in the area. Deribe Gemiyo explained that the aim of forage legume production is to boost the forage base for integration with sheep breed improvement. This session showed the power of an integrated approach employing multi-disciplinary efforts of animal nutritionists, crop breeders and agronomists to achieve multi-dimensional crop improvement.

Examining the forage crop variety adaptation trials.

Farmers and other attendees were particularly concerned about pure seed production and sustainable forage seed supply system. Areka ARC is currently undertaking varietal verification with farmers to identify options acceptable to farmers and for ultimate multiplication and distribution to scale.

Farmers were encouraged to organize themselves into groups or cooperatives and start selling forage seeds to other localities. In an effort to improve forage legume seed supply and sustainable production, Areka ARC and CBBP members agreed a memorandum to produce and multiply forage seed. Currently, farmers are receiving training on utilization of forage legumes, use of alternative feed resources and sheep fattening strategies.

The Doyogena sheep flock is productive and produces many young. However, nutrition limitations lead to reproductive wastage (abortion, weak birth, still birth and pre-weaning stunt growth and mortality) and poor growth rates of lambs. In view of this, ICARDA recently introduced AI and estrus synchronization reproductive technologies to shorten lambing intervals, adjust times of lambing to periods of feed availability and reduce reproductive wastage. An additional benefit is the possibility to increase the numbers of lambs with similar ages and sizes within batches so as to facilitate ram selection for genetic improvement and market opportunities for lambs of similar ages.

AI technology for sheep, the first in Ethiopia, is being pioneered in two sheep breeding cooperatives in Ancha Sadicho and Hawora Arara. The increasing tendency towards market-oriented sheep farming by Doyogena farmers has increased the interests of farmers to reap benefits from multiple births and thus to try out these new technologies.

Ewes and lambs born through AI

Zonal Livestock and Fisheries Department heads in attendance emphasized the importance that these reproductive technologies be scaled out. Desta Gabriel, from the Regional Bureau of Livestock and Fishery promised to provide ultrasound machines that can be used for sheep pregnancy diagnosis for some zones of the region. This was in response to concerns raised by the Head of the Livestock and Fishery office for Wolaita zone who highlighted the difficulty of pregnancy diagnosis in livestock. Scanning identifies pregnant and non-pregnant females after completion of the mating season. It offers i) an opportunity for re-mating; ii) culling of non-fertile females; and iii) timely planning of conditions for birth.

At the end of the day, general discussions between farmers and livestock officers were held and chaired by the Southern Agricultural Research Institute Director General, Nigussie Dana. The main challenge raised was how to scale up the reproductive technologies in view of the shortage of trained personnel. This calls for concerted efforts by Ministry of Agriculture and research. So far core teams of national technical staff (veterinarians and animal production specialists) have been trained by ICARDA on machine use, interpretation of ultrasound images, and data valorization in Ethiopia.

In his closing remarks, the Nigussie acknowledged all stakeholders who contributed to the success of livestock interventions in the region. He particularly recognized the consistent commitment of ICARDA in improving sheep production in the region over the past five years.                                           

Story by Jane Wamatu, ICARDA with contributions from Deribe Gemiyo, Addisu Jimma and Kifle Tawle from the Areka ARC.

The activity was funded through the Livestock and Fish CRP and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)-funded SmaRT Ethiopia Project – Improving the Performance of Pro-Poor Sheep and Goat Value Chains for Enhanced Livelihoods, Food and Nutrition Security in Ethiopia.

This brief introduces the justification for this work and the different streams of work to develop and test tools to assess the environmental impacts of livestock and fish production in developing countries.

While livestock production has for some time been linked to deforestation, land degradation, biodiversity loss and water scarcity, more recent studies, and particularly the publication of the 2006 FAO report ‘Livestock’s long shadow’ indicate that livestock is also a significant source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. As demand for livestock products continues to grow, driven by rising population and dietary shifts, there is an urgent need to develop strategies to reduce the environmental footprints and GHG emission intensity from livestock. The first step in this process is to develop tools to estimate potential impacts of such strategies.

The situation is slightly different for fish as there is less knowledge on the magnitude of the environmental impact of these systems. Until recently, the main aquaculture-related threats were considered to be genetic contamination or displacement of wild stocks due to farmed fish escapes, the transfer of disease from farmed to wild stocks, eutrophication of aquatic ecosystems caused by fish farm discharges, pressure on wild fisheries for fish meal and the destruction of wetlands or coastal ecosystems due to aquaculture development. However, recent studies have recognized the wider environmental footprint of aquaculture, including GHG emissions, which needs to be ascertained and its impact mitigated as production expands.

One way of reducing impacts is to cut consumption of livestock and aquaculture products. However, these sectors make a valuable welfare contributions in many economies. Reduced consumption could threaten the livelihoods of vulnerable producers and value chain actors as well as the nutrition security of large populations in the developing world. Another option is improve the resource-use efficiency of livestock and aquaculture practices which is believed would result in rapid environmental gains.

Tackling this requires that we have reliable tools to estimate and model potential impacts of improved livestock and fish practices along value chains (see a review of assessments).

In recent years, the Livestock and Fish CGIAR Research Program developed and tested tools to estimate the environmental impacts of livestock value chains under the CLEANED project –  mainly with dairy value chains in Tanzania and Nicaragua. In Egypt and Bangladesh, WorldFish partnered with the Stockholm Resilience Centre to carry out life cycle analysis (LCA) of pond-based tilapia systems and carp polyculture systems.

Results of the assessments carried out in Egypt, Nicaragua and Tanzania show that there are clearly identifiable win–win scenarios where immediate benefits, such as increased productivity, incomes and ecosystem services, such as soil fertility, water availability and biodiversity, can incentivize farmers to adopt improved practices and technologies, while reducing environmental impacts.

Download a brief on this work

The brief was produced as part of a synthesis activity of the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish. It focuses on ex-ante environment impact assessment work carried out between 2012 and 2016 and supported by the Program and other investors.

All the briefs in this series are:

• Notenbaert, A.M.O., Dickson, M., Hoek, R. van der. and Henriksson, P. 2016. Assessing the environmental impacts of livestock and fish production. Livestock and Fish brief 16. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78478
• Notenbaert, A.M.O., Lannerstad, M., Barron, J., Paul, B., Ran, Y., Morris, J., Fraval, S., Mugatha, S. and Herrero, M. 2016. Using the CLEANED approach to assess the environmental impacts of livestock production. Livestock and Fish brief 17. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78476
• Pfeifer, C., Morris, J. and Lannerstad, M. 2016. The CLEANED R simulation tool to assess the environmental impacts of livestock production. Livestock and Fish brief 18. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/784764
• Birnholz, C., Paul B. and Notenbaert A.M.O. 2016. The CLEANED Excel tool to assess the environmental impacts of livestock production. Livestock and Fish brief 19. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78472
• Hoek, R. van der., Birnholz, C. and Notenbaert A.M.O. 2016. Using the CLEANED approach to assess environmental impacts in the dual-purpose cattle value chain in Nicaragua. Livestock and Fish brief 20. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78473
• Notenbaert, A.M.O., Morris, J., Pfeifer, C., Paul, B., Birnholz, C., Fraval, S., Lannerstad, M., Herrero, M. and Omore, A.O. 2016. Using the CLEANED approach to assess environmental impacts in the dairy value chain in Tanga, Tanzania. Livestock and Fish brief 21. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78475
• Henriksson, P. and Dickson, M. 2016. Using the life cycle assessment approach to assess the environmental impacts of fish production. Livestock and Fish brief 22. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78471
• Dickson, M. and Henriksson, P. 2016. A life cycle assessment of the environmental impacts in the Egyptian aquaculture value chain. Livestock and Fish brief 23. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78478

One of the approaches used (in Egypt) was life cycle assessment (LCA). The program has produced two briefs from this experience – the first introducing LCA; the second reporting from an application of the approach in the Egyptian aquaculture value chain.

LCA dates back to the 1970s and was built around the need for a framework that could quantify the environmental impacts of different production chains and aggregate these towards a unit of reference (functional unit). Today the tool is supported by its own ISO standard (ISO 14044 2006), a number of different software packages (e.g. SimaPro and openLCA) and databases (e.g. ecoinvent), and numerous detailed guidelines.

LCA has already extensively been used for livestock, aquaculture and a range of other food commodities. Its strength in these analyses has been its ability to highlight the most environmentally relevant processes throughout value chains and eventual trade-off among different environmental impacts.

Download a brief introducing the LCA approach

• Henriksson, P. and Dickson, M. 2016. Using the life cycle assessment approach to assess the environmental impacts of fish production. Livestock and Fish brief 22. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78471

Download a brief reporting on the application of the LCA approach in the Egyptian aquaculture value chain

• Dickson, M. and Henriksson, P. 2016. A life cycle assessment of the environmental impacts in the Egyptian aquaculture value chain. Livestock and Fish brief 23. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78478

The briefs were produced as part of a synthesis activity of the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish. It focuses on ex-ante environment impact assessment work carried out between 2012 and 2016 and supported by the Program and other investors.

One of the approaches was to develop the CLEANED (Comprehensive Livestock Environmental Assessment for Improved Nutrition, a Secured Environment and Sustainable Development along Livestock and Fish Value Chains) tool to help users  explore and assess the multiple environmental impacts of intensifying livestock value chains in developing countries.

• CLEANED assessments are envisioned to be rapid, ex-ante assessments that quantify potential environmental impacts of planned livestock development interventions at multiple spatial scales.
• CLEANED assessments have a particular focus on developing countries. They use a participatory approach to ensure relevant assessments based on often fragmented data on agro-ecological landscapes and production systems.
• CLEANED assessments can support stakeholders choose interventions that manage both production opportunities and environmental co-benefits.

The two assessment tools are currently designed for ‘livestock enterprises’. They were initially developed with data from East Africa and for dairy applications (with testing in Tanzania). They have also been tested for dual-purpose cattle systems in Nicaragua and, partially, for smallholder pigs in Uganda.

Download a brief introducing the CLEANED approach

• Notenbaert, A.M.O., Lannerstad, M., Barron, J., Paul, B., Ran, Y., Morris, J., Fraval, S., Mugatha, S. and Herrero, M. 2016. Using the CLEANED approach to assess the environmental impacts of livestock production. Livestock and Fish brief 17. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78476

Download briefs on the CLEANED tools

• Pfeifer, C., Morris, J. and Lannerstad, M. 2016. The CLEANED R simulation tool to assess the environmental impacts of livestock production. Livestock and Fish brief 18. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/784764
• Birnholz, C., Paul B. and Notenbaert A.M.O. 2016. The CLEANED Excel tool to assess the environmental impacts of livestock production. Livestock and Fish brief 19. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78472

Download briefs reporting on uses of the CLEANED tools in Tanzania and Nicaragua

• Hoek, R. van der., Birnholz, C. and Notenbaert A.M.O. 2016. Using the CLEANED approach to assess environmental impacts in the dual-purpose cattle value chain in Nicaragua. Livestock and Fish brief 20. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78473
• Notenbaert, A.M.O., Morris, J., Pfeifer, C., Paul, B., Birnholz, C., Fraval, S., Lannerstad, M., Herrero, M. and Omore, A.O. 2016. Using the CLEANED approach to assess environmental impacts in the dairy value chain in Tanga, Tanzania. Livestock and Fish brief 21. Nairobi: ILRI. http://hdl.handle.net/10568/78475

The briefs were produced as part of a synthesis activity of the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish. It focuses on ex-ante environment impact assessment work carried out between 2012 and 2016 and supported by the Program and other investors.

This is associated with the relationship of women and men to stocks of capitals: social, financial, human, natural, political, cultural, and physical, and how the relationship between various capitals is managed.

Our data were collected using semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions in six woredas (districts) in different parts of Ethiopia. Our findings show that men and women are constrained by similar capitals, but women are more constrained by lower levels of the seven capitals.

The sheep value chain has more opportunities for women. It is important to strengthen women’s access to, and management of, all these capitals to become more effective managers of small ruminants. This demands behavioral change and working to challenge gender norms.

Download the article:

Mulema, A.A., Farnworth, C.R. and Colverson, K.E. 2017. Gender-based constraints and opportunities to women’s participation in the small ruminant value chain in Ethiopia: A community capitals analysis. Community Development 48: 1-19. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15575330.2016.1267785

The starting point for this brief is that weak public and private sector service delivery constrains translation of genetic improvements into productivity gains for smallholder farmers in developing countries. It introduces integrated delivery systems as mechanisms to enhance farmer access and uptake of improved livestock and fish genetics.

Download the brief:

Bruno, J., Rekik, M., Mekkawy, W., Ouma, R. and Mwai, O. 2016. Integrated delivery systems of improved livestock and fish genetics. Livestock and Fish Brief 15. Nairobi: ILRI.

The design of a livestock breeding program largely depends on adequate infrastructure—ranging from efficient collection of phenotypes, development of models, data analysis, program implementation to buy-in from the public and farmers. This key infrastructure is usually lacking in developing countries.

Using novel tools that circumvent these constraints offers many opportunities to developing countries. However, this requires a range of scientific expertise not readily available, underlining the importance of collaboration between advanced universities and research institutes.

This brief outlines how a circle of innovation approach can be used to put these novel tools into use in developing countries.

Download the brief:

Mrode, R., Han Jianlin, Mwacharo, J. and Koning, D. Jan de. 2016. Novel tools to inform animal breeding programs. Livestock and Fish Brief 14. Nairobi: ILRI.