Constraints to the use of artificial insemination service and possible solutions

The East Africa Dairy Development (EADD) project is aregional industry development program implemented by a consortium of partners led by Heifer International. It is currently being piloted in 18 sites in Kenya, 8 in Rwanda and 27 in Uganda. The overall goal of the project is to transform the lives of 179,000 families, or about 1 million people, by doubling household dairy income in 10 years through integrated interventions in dairy production, market access and knowledge application. This brief highlights key results of a baseline survey that was carried out with the objective of analyzing the level of preference for and use of artificial insemination (AI) in different project sites, and identifying constraints or problems hindering the optimal use of the service and possible solutions. Details are available in the baseline survey report No. 2

Feeds and feeding practices

The East Africa Dairy Development (EADD) project is a regional industry development program implemented by a consortium of partners led by Heifer International. It is currently being piloted in 18 sites in Kenya, 8 in Rwanda and 27 in Uganda. The overall goal of the project is to transform the lives of 179,000 families, or about 1 million people, by doubling household dairy income in 10 years through integrated interventions in dairy production, market access and knowledge application. This brief highlights key results of a baseline survey that was carried out with the objective of providing information on cattle production systems and the current feeding practices in smallholder households in selected sites in Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. Details are available in the baseline survey report No. 3

Feeds and feeding practices

The East Africa Dairy Development (EADD) project is a regional industry development program implemented by a consortium of partners led by Heifer International. It is currently being piloted in 18 sites in Kenya, 8 in Rwanda and 27 in Uganda. The overall goal of the project is to transform the lives of 179,000 families, or about 1 million people, by doubling household dairy income in 10 years through integrated interventions in dairy production, market access and knowledge application. This brief highlights key results of a baseline survey that was carried out with the objective of providing information on cattle production systems and the current feeding practices in smallholder households in selected sites in Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. Details are available in the baseline survey report No. 3

Rainfall and Temperature Trends and Variability in Arid and Semi-arid Lands of Kitui County, Kenya

A study was carried out to analyse rainfall and temperature trends and variability in selected agro-ecological zones in Kitui County. Climate Hazards Group Infrared Precipitation with Stations (CHIRPS) rainfall dataset was used while temperature data was obtained from the Climatic Research Unit gridded Time Series (CRU TS) dataset. The results indicated that there was a non-significant decreasing trend (p<0.05) in average annual rainfall in all the four agro-ecological zones (p<0.05) for a 30-years period (1988-2018) in the study area. A decreasing trend in March-April-May (MAM) seasonal rainfall trend was reported in the arid and semi-arid agro-ecological zones while an increasing trend was recorded in the transitional and semi-humid zones. For the October-November-December (OND) seasonal rainfall, a non-significant decreasing trend was reported in all the four agro-ecological zones. Additionally, a higher annual rainfall variability was recorded in the drier (arid) and wetter (semi-humid) zones compared to that in semi-arid and transitional zones. Moreover, the study established that there was a spatial variation in both MAM and OND seasonal rainfall variability and that rainfall variability was higher in the OND seasonal rainfall than that of the MAM seasonal rainfall in all the agro-ecological zones. With reference to temperature trends, a statistically significant increasing trend in annual and OND seasonal average maximum and minimum temperatures was reported in all the four agro-ecological zones. Further, the study noted a non-significant increasing trend in maximum and minimum temperatures for the MAM season in all the agro-ecological zones. In regard to temperature variability, the study deduced that there was low temperature variability compared to rainfall variability in all the four agro-ecological zones. The study recommends that location-specific rainfall and temperature analysis should guide planning and implementation of adaptation strategies for effective response to climate variability. Keywords: Agro-ecological Zones, Mann-Kendall Test, Coefficient of Variation, CHIRPS, CRU TS DOI: 10.7176/JEES/12-12-05 Publication date: December 31st 202

Integrating stakeholders' perspectives and spatial modelling to develop scenarios of future land use and land cover change in northern Tanzania.

Rapid rates of land use and land cover change (LULCC) in eastern Africa and limited instances of genuinely equal partnerships involving scientists, communities and decision makers challenge the development of robust pathways toward future environmental and socioeconomic sustainability. We use a participatory modelling tool, Kesho, to assess the biophysical, socioeconomic, cultural and governance factors that influenced past (1959-1999) and present (2000-2018) LULCC in northern Tanzania and to simulate four scenarios of land cover change to the year 2030. Simulations of the scenarios used spatial modelling to integrate stakeholders' perceptions of future environmental change with social and environmental data on recent trends in LULCC. From stakeholders' perspectives, between 1959 and 2018, LULCC was influenced by climate variability, availability of natural resources, agriculture expansion, urbanization, tourism growth and legislation governing land access and natural resource management. Among other socio-environmental-political LULCC drivers, the stakeholders envisioned that from 2018 to 2030 LULCC will largely be influenced by land health, natural and economic capital, and political will in implementing land use plans and policies. The projected scenarios suggest that by 2030 agricultural land will have expanded by 8-20% under different scenarios and herbaceous vegetation and forest land cover will be reduced by 2.5-5% and 10-19% respectively. Stakeholder discussions further identified desirable futures in 2030 as those with improved infrastructure, restored degraded landscapes, effective wildlife conservation, and better farming techniques. The undesirable futures in 2030 were those characterized by land degradation, poverty, and cultural loss. Insights from our work identify the implications of future LULCC scenarios on wildlife and cultural conservation and in meeting the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and targets by 2030. The Kesho approach capitalizes on knowledge exchanges among diverse stakeholders, and in the process promotes social learning, provides a sense of ownership of outputs generated, democratizes scientific understanding, and improves the quality and relevance of the outputs

Serengeti's futures: Exploring land use and land cover change scenarios to craft pathways for meeting conservation and development goals

Rapid land use transformations and increased climatic uncertainties challenge potential sustainable development pathways for communities and wildlife in regions with strong economic reliance on natural resources. In response to the complex causes and consequences of land use change, participatory scenario development approaches have emerged as key tools for analyzing drivers of change to help chart the future of socio-ecological systems. We assess stakeholder perspectives of land use and land cover change (LULCC) and integrate co-produced scenarios of future land cover change with spatial modeling to evaluate how future LULCC in the wider Serengeti ecosystem might align or diverge with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals and the African Union's Agenda 2063. Across the wider Serengeti ecosystem, population growth, infrastructural development, agricultural economy, and political will in support of climate change management strategies were perceived to be the key drivers of future LULCC. Under eight scenarios, declines in forest area as a proportion of total land area ranged from 0.1% to 4% in 2030 and from 0.1% to 6% in 2063, with the preservation of forest cover linked to the level of protection provided. Futures with well-demarcated protected areas, sound land use plans, and stable governance were highly desired. In contrast, futures with severe climate change impacts and encroached and degazetted protected areas were considered undesirable. Insights gained from our study are important for guiding pathways toward achieving sustainability goals while recognizing societies' relationship with nature. The results highlight the usefulness of multi-stakeholder engagement, perspective sharing, and consensus building toward shared socio-ecological goals

Hepatosplenomegaly associated with chronic malaria exposure: evidence for a pro-inflammatory mechanism exacerbated by schistosomiasis

In sub-Saharan Africa, chronic hepatosplenomegaly, with palpable firm/hard organ consistency, is common, particularly among school-aged children. This morbidity can be caused by long-term exposure to malaria, or by Schistosoma mansoni, and it is exacerbated when these two occur together. Although immunological mechanisms probably underlie the pathogenic process, these mechanisms have not been identified, nor is it known whether the two parasites augment the same mechanisms or induce unrelated processes that nonetheless have additive or synergistic effects. Kenyan primary schoolchildren, living in a malaria/schistosomiasis co-transmission area, participated in cross-sectional parasitological and clinical studies in which circulating immune modulator levels were also measured. Plasma IL-12p70, sTNF-RII, IL-10 and IL-13 levels correlated with relative exposure to malaria, and with hepatosplenomegaly. Soluble-TNF-RII and IL-10 were higher in children infected withS. mansoniHepatosplenomegaly caused by chronic exposure to malaria was clearly associated with increased circulating levels of pro-inflammatory mediators, with higher levels of regulatory modulators, and with tissue repair cytokines, perhaps being required to control the inflammatory response. The higher levels of regulatory modulators amongstS. mansoniinfected children, compared to those without detectableS. mansoni and malarial infections, but exposed to malaria, suggest thatS. mansoniinfection may augment the underlying inflammatory reaction

The impact of malaria-protective red blood cell polymorphisms on parasite biomass in children with severe Plasmodium falciparum malaria

Severe falciparum malaria is a major cause of preventable child mortality in sub-Saharan Africa. Plasma concentrations of P. falciparum Histidine-Rich Protein 2 (PfHRP2) have diagnostic and prognostic value in severe malaria. We investigate the potential use of plasma PfHRP2 and the sequestration index (the ratio of PfHRP2 to parasite density) as quantitative traits for case-only genetic association studies of severe malaria. Data from 2198 Kenyan children diagnosed with severe malaria, genotyped for 14 major candidate genes, show that polymorphisms in four major red cell genes that lead to hemoglobin S, O blood group, α-thalassemia, and the Dantu blood group, are associated with substantially lower admission plasma PfHRP2 concentrations, consistent with protective effects against extensive parasitized erythrocyte sequestration. In contrast the known protective ATP2B4 polymorphism is associated with higher plasma PfHRP2 concentrations, lower parasite densities and a higher sequestration index. We provide testable hypotheses for the mechanism of protection of ATP2B4