ILRI and the East African Community secretariat signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) which aims to establish a long term relationship for purposes of exploiting their complimentaries in research knowledge generation and its application to further their respective missions. In particular, ILRI and EAC are to explore possibilities of…(Full document PDF) Continue reading
Author Archives: ILRI Communications
Kenya seeks to grow beef export market
The Kenyan Government is making fresh attempts to establish livestock disease-free zones to expand the country’s beef export market. Livestock permanent secretary Kenneth Lusaka said his ministry was expecting some funding from both internal and external sources for the setting up of the zones. Read more. . . (The Daily Nation) Continue reading
Milk farmers fight for stake in New KCC
Milk farmers are demanding the first priority to buy the New Kenya Co-operative Creameries, which the government has lined up for sale. The producers say the defunct KCC, which was renamed New KCC six years ago owes them more than Sh1.2 billion and that they were interested in buying it through private placement. The giant … Continue reading
Livestock – A pathway out of poverty
Professor Elaine Watson, Head of the Dick Vet, recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding to facilitate cooperation with GALVmed (Global Alliance for Livestock Veterinary Medicines). GALVmed is a not-for-profit global alliance working with key partners to make animal health medicines accessible to poor livestock keepers in developing countries. Read more. . . Continue reading
They’re chipping cows in Kenya
Virtual City using Microsoft technology, it uses radio frequency identification (RFID) to keep track of cattle in Kenya, according to a Microsoft blog post. The tag goes in the cow’s stomach (no word on which one, or how it doesn’t end up coming out again) and keeps information on the cow’s origin, previous owners and … Continue reading
Livestock may do better than crops, African farmers told
The stresses of climate-induced crop failures could be avoided if more small farmers in Africa also raised livestock, say researchers. Climate change will result in a 10–20 per cent drop in yield for crops such as beans, maize and millet in Africa’s drylands by 2050, researchers from the Kenya-based International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and … Continue reading
Africa / Climate Change / Drought / East Africa / ILRI / Indigenous Breeds / Kenya
Dry future for Kenyan farms
Life in Kenya’s famine-prone fringe areas will get worse with total crop failure within the next four decades, according to a new study. The study carried out by the International Livestock Research Institute says drought-tolerant maize and even the much more resilient millet will hardly survive hotter weather and rainfall shifts in the areas. It … Continue reading
Veterinarians at high risk for viral, bacterial infections from animals
The recent H1N1 influenza epidemic has raised many questions about how animal viruses move to human populations. One potential route is through veterinarians, who, according to a new report by University of Iowa College of Public Health researchers, are at markedly increased risk of infection with zoonotic pathogens — the viruses and bacteria that can … Continue reading
Africa / Climate Change / East Africa / ILRI / Livestock
Afrique: L’élevage de chameaux, peut-être une solution
L’élevage de chameaux pourrait être une option pour quelque 20 à 35 millions de personnes vivant dans des zones semi-arides d’Afrique, et qui seront bientôt dans l’incapacité de cultiver leurs terres en raison du changement climatique, a dit le co-auteur d’une nouvelle étude. D’ici 2050, la hausse des températures et la raréfaction des précipitations dans … Continue reading
Cattle business driving rain forest clearing
Demand for beef products, particularly in Britain and Europe, has led ranchers to raze thousands of acres of Amazon rain forest to raise cattle. The cattle business represents the greatest threat to the Amazon rain forest, 80% of which still stands today. A three-year investigation by Greenpeace found cattle ranchers have followed the inroads by … Continue reading
ILRI Clippings 