PRIME helps farmers with livestock become more resilient to shocks. It also supports better management of existing water resources through more efficient rain harvesting techniques, better early warning systems and information sharing, and improved governance of communal lands and water spots. By improving linkages in the livestock value chain, PRIME also helps ensure profitable outlets for livestock sales when there is not enough feed available to support existing herd sizes. Continue reading
Category Archives: Project
Injection of new genetics funding to boost the health and productivity of Africa’s farm animals
Scientists will use funds from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to look at how genetic information can improve the health and productivity of farmed animals in tropical climates. The institutions in Scotland and Africa where the researchers are based are also making additional contributions, taking the total funding pot to £20 million over the next five years. Continue reading
Animal genetics project to review and improve Tanzania’s dairy herd for higher milk yields
The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) is working with partners to understand the breed composition of dairy and indigenous cattle in Tanzania and to find the appropriate dairy cattle genotypes that will help farmers identify and keep dairy breeds that are appropriately matched to farms. Continue reading
All things zoonotic: An ‘Urban Zoo’ research project tracks livestock-based pathogen flows in and around Nairobi
An Urban Zoo research project in Kenya (more formally called ‘Epidemiology, Ecology and Socio‐Economics of Disease Emergence in Nairobi’) is tracking pathogen flows in and around Kenya’s capital city. Continue reading
Reducing the vulnerability of Somali livestock communities through capacity development and enhanced market access
An ILRI project in Somalia aims to strengthen local capacity to mobilize and use knowledge from Somali livestock research in decision making. It also aims to enhance the capacities of public and private sectors to improve livestock products’ marketing and safety. Continue reading
Organizations join forces to fight African swine fever
Inspecting a pig’s health in Busia, western Kenya (photo credit: ILRI/Charlie Pye-Smith). ‘Occurrence of African swine fever (ASF) was reported in almost half of the countries that make up the African continent in 2012. This transboundary animal disease (TAD) can have a powerful negative impact on a nation’s economy and social structures. It causes major … Continue reading
Kenya is hotspot for alfatoxin-related deaths–Report
‘The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) has commissioned a research project that will ascertain the levels of aflatoxins in the milk consumed in Kenya. ‘Kenyans consume more than 145 litres of milk per person annually increasing the risks associated with milk-related aflatoxins. Because of the higher milk consumption, especially by young children, pregnant and nursing … Continue reading
Aflatoxins: New briefs disclose the threat to people and livestock and what research is doing about it
A damaged maize cob that, if harvested with clean cobs, can contaminate all the cobs with aflatoxins (photo credit: Joseph Atehnkeng/IITA). ‘The UN World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that billions of people in the developing world are chronically exposed to aflatoxin, a natural poison on food crops which causes cancer, impairs the immune system, inhibits … Continue reading
N2Africa project putting nitrogen fixation to work for smallholder farmers in Ethiopia
On 27 and 28 February, the N2Africa project was officially launched in Ethiopia. More than 70 people attended the workshop, representing project partners, the private sector, universities, government and researchers. Continue reading
On a cancer killer of cattle in Africa–Voice of America interviews ILRI’s Vish Nene
New research is underway to develop an advanced vaccine against East Coast fever — a parasitic disease that killed more than one-million cattle in Africa last year. Continue reading