Jump to content

Pastoralism

Food for thought: livestock feeding support during drought

Surviving the drought: the need for a livelihoods-based response in pastoralist areas



Authors: ; USAID
Publisher: Feinstein International Center, USA, 2007

Full text of document

This Pastoralist Livelihoods Initiative policy brief argues that a livelihoods-based drought response in pastoralist areas could aim to protect key livestock assets and support rapid rebuilding of herds after drought.

The brief discusses that one aspect of developing such a response requires decision makers to understand the relative importance of different causes of livestock mortality during drought. For example, if most animals die from disease, then it makes sense to invest in veterinary care. While overall livestock mortality is difficult to measure, recent research by the Pastoralist Livelihood Initiative found that:

  • most of the excess livestock mortality recorded in drought years is caused by starvation
  • disease is an important cause of mortality in both normal years and drought years, indicating weaknesses in veterinary services in both situations; disease-related mortality does not always increase during drought
After a review of the costs and benefits of livestock feed supplementation as a means of protecting a core herd of breeding animals and encouraging post-drought recovery, the brief examines key policy and programming issues which are related, noting that:
  • supplementary feeding is not a stand-alone intervention - it should be part of an overall drought cycle management approach, which combines early de-stocking and preventive veterinary care
  • feeding can start during the alarm phase of a drought with high energy, high fat and high protein concentrates - this is very cost-effective compared to restocking after drought
  • maintaining drought-stricken herds on roughage alone may not be very effective as weakened animals cannot regain body weight and strength in a short time to cope with the situation
  • optimal feed provision in pastoral areas should be planned for a maximum of three months at a time, as most droughts (or the need for additional feed from outside) do not last longer than that
  • in normal periods, agencies need to assume that livestock feed purchase and distribution will be required in the next drought - this type of planning will assist rapid buying and distribution of feed.