Published in April 2020
Forage scarcity associated with prolonged and recurrent droughts impedes livestock productivity and threatens pastoralists’ livelihoods in the drylands.
• Cultivation of fodder may increase livestock productivity and provide an opportunity of livelihood diversification by selling excessive fodder resources.
• Key challenges to fodder production include recurrent droughts, limited storage facilities, intrusion by both livestock and wildlife, and inadequate inputs.
• Establishing fodder groups provides pastoralists with a platform for shared learning and expanding social networks.
• Strengthening the existing fodder groups through enhanced access to support services is critical for up-scaling commercial fodder production.
• The study has shown that traditional pastoralists can change to a more commercially focused approach, as long as interventions are taking into account local needs and perspectives.
(PDF) Fodder scarcity in pastoral areas of Kenya (researchgate.net)
Livestock feed insecurity remains a constant challenge to livestock production in the drylands of many low-income countries. In Kenya, the feed deficit is estimated to as much as 70% of the total annual fodder requirements for all livestock. This feed shortage is the leading cause for 80% of livestock deaths in the arid and semi-arid lands (ASALs). Scarcity of grazing resources has reduced the cattle population in the ASALs by 27% as reported in a study conducted in 2016. Feed scarcity has largely been driven by recurrent droughts associated with climate change, as well as expanding livestock and human populations that result in overgrazing, encroachment and fragmentation of arable rangelands. These factors constrain livestock productivity, leading to increased food and income insecurity for over 14 million resource-poor pastoralists residing in the ASAL regions of Kenya.