Priority Tree Fodder Species in the Maasai Silvopastoral System of Kajiado District, Kenya

In an effort to improve pastoral land management systems, donor agencies have spent millions of dollars over the last two decades on research and development programmes. However, most of these programmes have been unsuccessful. The reasons for the failure are increasingly clear. Current thinking argues that more attention needs to be given to local knowledge systems and rural people\u27s participation in development planning and implementation. The involvement of local communities in the research process is critical and has been shown by Ego (2001) to lead to the design of appropriate interventions. The main objective of this study was to elicit pastoralists indigenous knowledge on priority fodder species and the criteria used in evaluation

Farmers Teaching Farmers: What Motivates Volunteer Farm Trainers?

This paper assesses the motivation behind the decisions of smallholder farmers to volunteer as farmer trainers despite the fact that they are not paid for their services. Volunteer farmer trainers (VFTs) are trained in livestock feeds and feeding methods by extension officers. They in turn train other farmers within their community without pay but receive training and seeds for setting up demonstration plots. Data collection was through a combination of focus group discussions and individual interviews with 99 VFTs from seven East Africa Dairy Development (EADD) sites in central and Rift Valley regions of Kenya. Findings of the study showed that VFTs were motivated by altruism, gaining knowledge/skills, social benefits, financial benefits and increased demand for training from farmers. Financial benefits were not only from sale of seed, seedlings, planting material but also VFTs have diversified into other business opportunities such as charging for services which include silage making, hay baling , training, ear tagging, chaff cutter hire and dehorning. The findings point to the fact that investments in human, social and financial capital are crucial to keeping VFTs motivated. These factors are key to ensuring the sustainability of farmer-to-farmer extension programs beyond project lifespans

Gender, agroforestry and food security in Africa

This paper reviews agroforestry's contribution to food security from a gender perspective. Emphasis is placed on women's contribution relative to men and the challenges they face. Agroforestry practices examined include fodder shrubs, ‘fertilizer trees’ and indigenous fruit trees. In examining the practices, we highlight women's and men's involvement in management, utilization and marketing of agroforestry products. The review shows that agroforestry makes a substantial contribution to food security. Furthermore, women are as actively involved as men; however, their level of participation and benefits are constrained by cultural norms and lack of resources. For women to benefit fully from agroforestry and hence contribute to food security, various policies, technological and institutional interventions are recommended

Involvement of Maasai Pastoralists in Participatory Rangeland Management Planning and Implementation

The pastoral Maasai lifestyle was and still is traditionally based on subsistence dairy and meat production. But with population increase, the rangelands can no longer sustainably support livestock production systems. Most of the rangelands which are used for grazing have been subdivided and partially cleared to pave way for cultivation, because of increased population pressure (Ego et al., 1999). This has led to a tendency to overgraze, thus impacting negatively on secondary production from the range. In order to effectively reverse this trend, the users of the rangeland resources were brought together to analyse constraints and opportunities for sustainable use, so that they could develop action plans for the improvement of the rangelands

Developing sustainable farmer-to-farmer extension: experiences from the volunteer farmer–trainer approach in Kenya

The reform of agricultural extension institutions in developing countries has in the past decade seen the implementation of many donor-supported farmer-to-farmer extension (F2FE) programs that are participatory and client-oriented. Their effectiveness in disseminating agricultural information is widely documented. However, most of these F2FE approaches only survive as long as funding support continues. Scant information exists on what can make externally initiated F2FE approaches sustainable. Drawing on lessons from a F2FE program known as the volunteer farmer–trainer (VFT) approach in an externally funded project in Kenya, this paper examines what makes such programs sustainable. The findings are based on the experiences of four dairy producer organizations (POs) that, three years after the end of project support, still had strong VFT programs. The paper highlights the importance of four drivers of sustainability: local institutional support, social capital, technical backstopping and motivation of farmer trainers to work voluntarily. Strong POs and farmer groups, coupled with the existence of an informal, multi-institutional network that supported the creation of knowledge and learning processes were key components contributing to the sustainability of the VFT program

Stakeholder planning of the institutionalization of the volunteer farmer-trainer approach in dairy producer organizations in Kenya: key steps and supporting mechanisms

The effectiveness of community-based extension approaches has been widely documented, however their sustainability remains weak. Institutionalization has been proposed as a way of achieving sustainability. This paper shares experiences of the learning and planning phase of the institutionalization of the volunteer farmer-trainer (VFT) approach in three dairy producer organizations (POs) in Kenya. The paper builds a detailed understanding of the key steps and social processes involved and the wider lessons that might be learned regarding institutionalization in the context of local institutions such POs. We draw on data from key informant interviews, focus groups discussions and workshops. The first phase of the process which spanned one year involved engagements with stakeholders at different levels; from VFTs, dairy cooperative management, government extension and local NGOs. The process involved awareness creation, joint learning at the individual, group and organization level, a strengths-weaknesses-opportunities-threats (SWOT) analysis of producer organizations and identifying opportunities for harnessing resources for support functions. We highlight the important supporting social and institutional processes that are required for this to happen. These include getting acceptance and support from key stakeholders, developing a shared understanding, stakeholder ownership of the process, commitment from top leadership of POs and institutional structures to support the process. For the process to be actualized, we discuss mechanisms that need to be put in place