1 research outputs found
Sustainability transitions for smallholder farmers: How can government, research and development programs support profitable goat markets in Tete?
For Mozambique the goat sector provides huge
opportunities for reducing rural poverty levels,
improving food security and contributing to the
national economy. Mozambique has a huge demand
for goat meat and products. Large and medium size
buyers fail to source enough goats of the right quality
and supply consistently to feed the growing demand
in urban markets. Despite its potential, the goat sector
is not fully developed. Improved goat production
can provide an additional annual income of US$50
million at the national level. In the short term farmers
can double their income from goats. Though farmers
realize the critical role of goats as source of saving
and possible source of investment, they do not invest
much in goats and are not able to make an adequate
profit from selling their goats. Mortality rates of around
15%, poor quality of goats being sold to markets, and
livestock theft are losses to entire rural economies.
There are many causes for the low productivity, the
primary reasons being: a) Lack of a market structure
through which farmers and the private sector can
interact; b) Absence of a grading system that rewards
farmers for their investments in quality production; and
c) Livestock theft that destroys community trust, and
eventually hampers collective action among farmers..