AGRISERVE AGRO TIPS ZAMBIAN FARMERS ON LIVES STOCK PRODUCTIVITY LIVEST
By DAVIS MULENGA IMPLEMENTING a countrywide, systematic Artificial Insemination (AI) programme will drastically improve Zambia’s cattle population, says a livestock specialist.
This is as government gave priority to increasing livestock production to meet the rising local and international demand.
“This will improve productivity and better returns for livestock farmers,” said Renier Janse Van Vuuren, Managing Director of Agriserve Agro.
He was speaking at a farmer information workshop held at Lusaka’s Czech Centre of Excellence, an integrated cattle farm.
AI is a process by which sperm is collected from a male. It is then processed, stored, and artificially introduced into the female reproductive tract for the purpose of conception. It is the first great biotechnology applied to improve reproduction and genetics of farm animals. Worldwide it has also had an enormous impact on many species, but particularly dairy cattle.
According to estimates by the Veterinary Department, Zambia’s livestock sector consists of 4 900 000 cattle, 4 800 000 goats, 500 000 sheep, 3 790 000 pigs and nearly 100 000 000 poultry. It is mostly concentrated in Eastern, Western and Southern Provinces. Low productivity is a major constraint to the development of the livestock sector – it is not expanding at a rate sufficient to meet the growing demand.
According to Janse Van Vuuren, AI pilots done in parts of Southern Province had increased conception rates by as much as 55% from low double digits.
“It has been evident that AI in these parts has been successful, with some farmers increasing the conception rates of their animals.
“One of the major advantages, is that AI is the most effective low-input, high-output livestock management practices that local small-scale farmers could easily adopt,” he said.
AI also allows local farmers to mix imported breeds with local cattle breeds to create superior breeds at minimal cost. It also reduces disease transmission. In addition, AI increases the efficiency of bull usage, eliminating the physical stress during natural breeding and extends the animals’ reproductive lives.
Meanwhile, government says it will get into full operation 18 AI centres nationwide, including 4 regional laboratories, as it implements strategies for sustained high production and enhancement of value chains aimed at raising farmer incomes and reducing poverty.
According to the 2018 national budged unveiled last Friday by Finance Minister Felix Mutati, further spending will go towards the completion of constructing 200 dip tanks nationwide.
Government would further facilitate access to both local and foreign markets for livestock productions such as the export of one million goats per annum to the Middle East.
It is in this regard local livestock are increasingly interested in harnessing animal biodiversity to improve food production and food security amid climatic changes and global warming.
According to Rene Summers, animal scientist at Agriserve,
“One of the major advantages, is that AI is the most effective low-input, high-output livestock management practices that local smallscale farmers could easily adopt,”
“Artificial insemination underpins a concerted effort to ensure farmers use animal resources to improve incomes and promote food security in a sustainable fashion,”
embracing genetic diversity was key for livestock farmers for enhanced productivity and diversification.
Among challenges livestock farmers face are climate change, emerging diseases, pressure on land and water, and shifting market demands. This makes demanded preservation and sustainable use of animal genetic resources.
“Artificial insemination underpins a concerted effort to ensure farmers use animal resources to improve incomes and promote food security in a sustainable fashion,” says Summers.
Even more significant, AI could spur resource-constrained small-scale livestock farmers into major producers of beef and milk.
Summers noted that Zambia was characteristically endowed with good climate and pastures, factors that favoured the nation to become a major livestock producer.
He recommended AI to be conducted just before onset of the rain season to ensure animals got quality and adequate feed.
The United Nations Food and Agriculture (FAO) has lauded government’s efforts to step up efforts of sustainably managing national livestock breeds.
“Genetic diversity provides the raw material for farmers to improve breeds and adapt livestock populations to changing environments and changing demands,” notes FAO’s report on the state of world animal genetic resources for food and agriculture.
The report also cautioned against erosion traditional livestock production systems, and the neglect of breeds considered not competitive enough.
This comes at a time of global trade expansion in breeding livestock semen, often for crossbreeding purposes, with many developing countries, including Zambia emerging as significant importers of genetic material.
The FAO report had a slew of recommendation to better manage livestock diversity. This in- cluded detailed profiling of animal breeds and their production environment to avoid loss of genetic resources arising from limited knowledge.
Additionally, more needs to be done to monitor population trends and emerging threat to diversity.
“This requires enhanced knowledge application on the part of small-holders farmers, and we see knowledge dissemination and hands on demonstration on and offsite as the best opportunity to edge out in this approach,” says Summers.
Perhaps, the essence of how Agriserve is trying to assist livestock farmers expand and build sustainable animal populations, is best described in football terms – finding an opening and running through it. Invariably, the momentum would come from enabling increasing numbers of smallholder farmers to apply a few simple basics in AI.