Coppock, D. Layne

Demment, M. W.

Kaitho, R.

English

University of Kentucky

University of Kentucky UKnowledge International Grassland Congress Proceedings 21st International Grassland Congress / 8th International Rangeland Congress New Approaches for Coping with Pastoral Risk M. W. Demment University of California, Davis D. L. Coppock Utah State University R. Kaitho Texas A&M University Follow this and additional works at: https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc  Part of the Plant Sciences Commons, and the Soil Science Commons This document is available at https://uknowledge.uky.edu/igc/21/4-1/15 The 21st International Grassland Congress / 8th International Rangeland Congress took place in Hohhot, China from June 29 through July 5, 2008. Proceedings edited by Organizing Committee of 2008 IGC/IRC Conference Published by Guangdong People's Publishing House This Event is brought to you for free and open access by the Plant and Soil Sciences at UKnowledge. It has been accepted for inclusion in International Grassland Congress Proceedings by an authorized administrator of UKnowledge. For more information, please contact UKnowledge@lsv.uky.edu. 　 Multifunctional Grasslands in a Changing World 　 Volume Ⅰ 　 瞯 ]573　 瞯Grasslands/Rangelands Resources and Ecology ——— Indicators for Sustainable Use and Conservation of Grasslands/Rangelands ResourcesNew approaches for coping with pastoral riskM . Demment1 , D . L . Cop pock2 , R . K aitho31 G lobal L ivestock CRSP , UC Dav is , Dav is CA 95616 , USA . E‐mail :mw demment＠ ucdav is .edu ; 2 G lobal L ivestock CRSPPARIMA , Utah State University , Logan UT 84322‐5215 ; 3 Global L ivestock CRSP L INK S / L EW S , Texas A &MUniversity , College Station TX 77843‐2126 .Key words : collective action , livestock early warning system , livestock marketing , East AfricaIntroduction Pastoralists in East Africa face high and increasing exposure to risks , including limited access to grazing and waterdue to population pressure , insecurity , resource degradation , increasing climate variability , and lack of information aboutmarkets . In recognition that the traditional means of risk management‐‐mobility‐‐is much less available to pastoralists today ,the Global Livestock Collaborative Research Support Program ( GL‐CRSP ) has focuses on developing strategies to assistpastoralists in coping with risk . The approach is a three‐part strategy to : １ ) predict risk ; ２ ) better connect pastoralists tomarkets ; and ３) develop new capabilities to manage risk at the local level .Materials and methods To predict risk the GL‐CRSP developed the Livestock Early Warning Systems ( LEWS ;http :/ / glews .tamu .edu/ africa) that provides spatial predictions of forage availability ６０‐９０ days out for most of Eastern Africa and is part ofthe FEWS network ( Kaitho et al . , ２００７) . To better connect pastoralists to markets the Livestock Information Network andKnowledge System ( LINKS ;http :/ / links .tamu .edu) project has developed a cell‐phone based market information system thatprovides public data on markets and collated data for national integrated market reporting . These projects created a suite oftechnologies that combine real‐time , spatial‐based forage and climate conditions with market information enabling pastoralistsand managers / policy makers to make informed management and marketing decisions . In Ethiopia this has been augmented withoutreach programs that have built market networks involving producers , trading associations , and livestock exporters (Desta etal . , ２００６) . To gain understanding of risk factors and how they are perceived , the Pastoral Risk Management on East AfricanRangelands project surveyed hundreds of pastoral households in northern Kenya and southern Ethiopia to document the sourcesand perceptions of risk through periods of boom and bust in the livestock cycle .Results and discussion The LEWS team has developed a robust forage monitoring and livestock market information systemscovering all pastoral areas in Ethiopia , Kenya , Tanzania , Uganda , Djibouti and Somaliland . The two systems systematicallyand continuously collect and deliver timely information on forage supply and forecasts (６０‐９０ days) , and livestock market pricesand volume trends to stakeholders . This information is updated every １０ days with situation reports and maps distributed viaWorldSpace radios , email , internet and newsletters , impacting over ４００ organizations and ６００ decision makers in the region .Working closely with pastoral community groups dominated by women , the PARIMA team is assisting groups in problemsolving and approaches to livelihood diversification . In southern Ethiopia , ５９ collective action groups have been trained ,involving over ２ ,０００ members . These legally recognized savings and credit cooperatives have sustained themselves and createdassets . Over ４ ,５００ micro‐credit loans exceeding ＄ ５５９ ,０００ have been extended based on an accumulated pastoral savings of US＄ ９３ ,０００ , in part generated by animal trading . In associated efforts , PARIMA has organized １２ cross‐border ( Ethiopia/Kenya) meetings to address livestock production problems , trade , and conflict mitigation . Opening of export markets fromEthiopia to the Gulf States starting in ２００３ has resulted in a large outflow of marketed stock from northern Kenya and southernEthiopia ; over ２５ ,０００ head of sheep and goats were traded by １１ collective‐action groups assisted by PARIMA during ２００４‐０５alone (Desta et al , ２００６) .Conclusions Only by investing in interdisciplinary field studies and bringing new technologies to bear on the problem can weprovide new tools to mitigate risk in the contemporary pastoral environment . In order to understand �new" risks and how theyoperate and are perceived , it is important to invest in long‐term survey work . Participatory research has shown remarkableresults , as it integrates implementation and project design with community participation in a dynamic system of projectmonitoring , adjustment , and evolution . Projects , communities and development professionals learn by monitoring , rethinking ,and adjusting their efforts .ReferencesDesta , S . , G . Gebru , S . Tezera , and D . L . Coppock , ( ２００６ ) . Linking pastoralists and exporters in a livestock marketingchain : recent experiencees from Ethiopia . Pages １０９‐１２８ in Pastoral Livestock Marketing in Eastern Africa : Research andPolicy Challenges . Intermediate Technology Publications L td , , Warwickshire , U .K . ２８８ pp .Kaitho , R .J . , A .A . Jama , J .W . Stuth , G . Kariuki , A . Abdirahman , L . MacOpiyo and J . Ndung摧u . ( ２００７ ) . Livestockearly warning information resource in the Horn of Africa : Forage and livestock marketing information analysis and forecasts .Outlook on A griculture . Vol ３６ , ＃ ４ .

New Approaches for Coping with Pastoral Risk

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New Approaches for Coping with Pastoral Risk

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