Category Archives: Policy

Agriculture / Article / Directorate / East Africa / ILRI / ILRI40 / Kenya / Markets / Policy / Pro-Poor Livestock / Uganda

FAO’s Modibo Traore and Uganda’s Bright Rwamirama at ILRI@40 Nairobi conference (1 Oct)

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Bright Rwamirama, Honourable State Minister for Animal Industry, Uganda (left), and Modibo Traoré, FAO sub-regional coordinator for eastern Africa and representative to Ethiopia, the African Union and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, at the ILRI@40 conference in Nairobi, 1 Oct 2014 (photo credit: ILRI/Paul Karaimu). Which matters most to Africa’s agricultural development? Research … Continue reading →

Drylands / DRYLANDSCRP / ILRI / Opinion piece / Pastoralism / Policy / SLS / Vulnerability

Getting political about ensuring pastoral land rights

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Participatory work for ensuring equitable use of, and rights to, pastoral rangelands (photo credit: Fiona Flintan). This article is written by ILRI rangeland governance specialist Fiona Flintan, who also serves as a technical coordinator for the Rangelands Initiative of the International Land Coalition (ILC). ‘It is easy, too easy, for scientists and others to shy away … Continue reading →

Africa / ILRI / Livestock / PIL / PIM / Policy / Report

Investing in Africa’s livestock sector

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Africa’s consumption of animal protein is skyrocketing. Most rural households are poor and keep livestock. Africa’s growth in demand for animal protein can provide major business opportunities and also greatly reduce poverty. Research shows that policies and investments should target both livelihood-oriented and business-oriented livestock keepers. Continue reading →

Animal Production / Article / CCAFS / Climate Change / Environment / Geodata / ILRI / ILRIComms / Intensification / Livestock Systems / Policy / SLS

The roads not taken: Should 1bn overfed people eat less meat? Or 1bn hungry farmers become more efficient?

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The Butcher, by Marc Chagall, 1910 (via Wikipaintings). Should you become vegetarian to help mitigate against global warming? Well, you could, or you might try just eating less meat, if you’re one of some 1 billion people chronically eating too much food. On the other hand, you might try helping some 1 billion small-scale livestock … Continue reading →

Animal Production / Article / CCAFS / Climate Change / Environment / Geodata / ILRI / ILRIComms / Intensification / Livestock Systems / Policy / SLS

Yet more evidence that agriculture–particularly livestock agriculture–needs to be part of climate discussions

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The farmyard, by Marc Chagall, 1954 (via Wikipaintings). Without big interventions, the future of food security looks bleak. So says an article in One Billion Hungry: Can We Feed the World Website. The clear message from . . . the IPCC Fifth Assessment Report is the urgent need for farmers to adapt to a changing … Continue reading →

Animal Production / Article / CCAFS / Climate Change / Environment / Geodata / ILRI / ILRIComms / Intensification / Livestock Systems / Policy / SLS

Research shows vast differences in livestock systems, diets and emissions–FCRN on PNAS paper

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Tara Garnet, of the Food Climate Research Network (FCRN), at Oxford University, recently highlighted a paper published recently in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). The paper, Biomass use, production, feed efficiencies, and greenhouse gas emissions from global livestock systems, is written by livestock scientists at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI, Kenya) and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO, Australia). Continue reading →

Animal Production / Event / ILRIComms / Intensification / LIVESTOCKFISH / Markets / PIL / Policy / Southeast Asia / Value Chains / Vietnam

Vietnam’s household livestock farming set for growth

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Young water buffalo and rice fields in Mai Chau (an ethnic Thai village), in Hoa Binh Province, northwest Vietnam. Household livestock production is set to become the leading form of livestock production in the country (photo on Flickr by Lon&Queta). ‘Household livestock production should be developed to reach a larger scale and higher professional level, participants … Continue reading →

Animal Production / Article / CCAFS / Climate Change / Environment / Food Security / ILRI / ILRIComms / Kenya / Livestock Systems / Policy / SLS

What livestock eat (and don’t eat) determines how productive, and efficient, they are–PNAS study

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Napier grass (aka ‘elephant grass’), a major feed supplement for dairy cows and other ruminant animals in Kenya (photo credit: Jeff Haskins). Even though research has shown that [greenhouse gas] GHG emissions from the Western world far outweigh those from the developing world, livestock keeping methods in Africa are increasingly becoming a key subject. Europe, … Continue reading →

ASSP / HUMIDTROPICS / ILRI / Innovation Systems / PIL / Policy / Report / Research

Innovation platforms to shape national policies in agriculture

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Innovation platforms are widely used in agricultural research to connect different stakeholders to achieve common goals. This second brief explains and illustrates ways that innovation platforms contribute to the development, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies. Continue reading →

Directorate / Film and video / Food Security / ILRI / ILRIComms / LIVESTOCKFISH / Nutrition / Policy / Presentation / Pro-Poor Livestock

Three short strategic films from livestock institute chart ways forward for ‘better lives through livestock’

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‘This video from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), features ILRI director general Jimmy Smith talking on the role of livestock in the global development agenda. ‘The 13 minute film points out that 4 of the top 5 agricultural commodities by value are livestock, and that in Africa, 4 of the top 10 agricultural commodities are … Continue reading →