Africa / Animal Feeding / Cattle / East Africa / ILRI / Kenya / Rwanda / Uganda

East Africa dairy development: Animal feeds and feeding practices

This brief from the East Africa Dairy Development Project highlights key results of a baseline survey that was carried out to provide information on cattle production systems and current feeding practices in smallholder households in selected sites in Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. Download the paper The East Africa Dairy Development (EADD) project is implemented by … Continue reading

Africa / Agriculture / Animal Diseases / Animal Health / Animal Products / Dairying / East Africa / ILRI / Kenya / Livestock / Rwanda / Uganda

Livestock disease challenges and gaps in the delivery of animal health services in East Africa

This brief from the East Africa Dairy Development Project highlights key results of a baseline survey to assess gaps in the delivery of animal health services in Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. Specifically, the survey assessed the main animal health problems; preventive and curative measures used to control animal diseases; livestock farmers’ access to veterinary and … Continue reading

Africa / Animal Diseases / Biodiversity / Cattle / Disease Control / Genetics / ILRI / Indigenous Breeds

Study finds gene clues to African cattle disease

Reuters reports the following yesterday. ‘Scientists studying the tsetse fly-borne disease “sleeping sickness” and a devastating version found in cattle say they have found two genes that may in future help rescue the livelihoods of millions of farmers in Africa. ‘In a study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) journal on … Continue reading

Africa / Agriculture / Crop-Livestock / Farming Systems / Food Security / ILRI / Livelihoods / Trade / Value Chains

With the right investments, Africa’s small farms could make profits as well as food

Mohamed Béavogui, director of the west and central African division of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), has the following to say in the Guardian‘s Poverty Matters Blog. ‘Africa’s smallholder farmers not only have the potential to produce enough food for export—and thereby contribute to food security worldwide—but to help lead the way to … Continue reading

CCAFS / CGIAR / Climate Change / Crop-Livestock / Drylands / DRYLANDSCRP / East Africa / Ethiopia / ILRI / Kenya / Somalia / Vulnerability

New initiative to support agro-pastoralists in Africa’s Horn

Coastweek and Xinhua have published accounts of a new East African dryland food production initiative. The initiative will work towards securing the agro-pastoral livelihoods of poor livestock keepers in the region. ‘Scientists have launched a new initiative to help boost smallholder farmers’ resilience to drought in the Horn of Africa’s drylands. ‘The new initiative supported by … Continue reading

Africa / Asia / Caribbean / Directorate / ILRI / Latin America

Guyanese to head Kenya-based International Livestock Research Institute

‘Jimmy Smith has been appointed the new director general designate of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), in Nairobi, Kenya. ‘ILRI board chair Knut Hove made the announcement at the 35th meeting of the ILRI Board of Trustees, recently, to an afternoon gathering of ILRI staff, management and board. ‘In his announcement, Hove said, “We … Continue reading

Animal Production / Drylands / DRYLANDSCRP / ILRI / India / Innovation Systems / Mozambique / South Asia / Southern Africa / Trade / Value Chains / Women

Reducing hunger and poverty through goat ‘value chains’ in India and Mozambique

In many of the world’s dry areas, goats provide poor people with nutrition and livelihoods. An imGoats Project is working to transform the lives of goat keepers in India and Mozambique by turning their subsistence-level goat production into viable and profitable enterprises. This two-year (2011–2012) project aims to improve the performance of small ruminant value … Continue reading

Drought / ILRI / Insurance / Kenya / Knowledge and Information / Livestock / Research

ILRI’s mobile-ICT based livestock insurance solution wins overall best innovation award at 2030 ICT Innovation Award ceremony

Eleven companies received a Vision 2030 ICT Innovation Award at a ceremony held in Diani as part of the Kenya ICT Board’s Connected Kenya Summit. The Kenya ICT Board and the Kenya Vision 2030 Delivery Secretariat invited companies that have developed solutions that drive economic growth and social development as outlined in Kenya’s Vision 2030 … Continue reading

Caribbean / Directorate / ILRI / Livestock / Research

ILRI’s new director general designate makes news in Guyana

Jimmy Smith, livestock advisor at the World Bank giving keynote lecture at Tropentag 2010 conference (photo credit: Tropentag on Flickr). ‘Guyanese Jimmy Smith has been appointed the new Director General of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), in Nairobi Kenya. ‘The announcement was made by ILRI board chair Knut Hove at the 35th meeting of … Continue reading

Africa / Climate Change / Drought / East Africa / Environment / ILRI / Impact Assessment / Kenya / Livelihoods / Research

Impacts of the Arid Lands Resource Management Project on livelihoods and vulnerability in Kenya

This Research report by Nancy Johnson and Ayago Wambile on The impacts of the Arid Lands Resource Management Project (ALRMPII) on livelihoods and vulnerability in the arid and semi-arid lands of Kenya was released on 04 April, 2011. There is an urgent need for new approaches and effective models for managing risk and promoting sustainable … Continue reading