AU_IBAR to work with Kenya Government to invest livestock feeds to spur productivity

Naivasha,

Wednesday, November 1, 2023,

KNA by Mabel Keya-Shikuku

Kenya requires 55 million metric tonnes of dry matter animal feed annually but only produces 40 percent leaving a huge supply gap of 33 million metric tonnes, the head of Animal Feeds and Nutrition Services at the Ministry of Agriculture, Dr Stanley Mutua has revealed. 

Dr Mutua further revealed that out of the 40 percent dry matter feed produced in the country every year, half of it goes to waste due to pots -harvest losses, making the country to rely on imports from the region which is not sustainable. 

Consequently, he said e Government working with other development partners to introduce feed investment planning and has prioritized 10 feed value chains totaling to 2.2 million acres around the country.

This he says, will help produce 4.3billion bales of hay every year through an investment of 3.4 million dollars (Sh. 480 Billion) spread over 10 years through funding from Bill and Melinda Gates Fountain through the African Union-Inter African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) and Kenya Government. 

He was speaking in Naivasha during the launch of Resilient African Feed and Fodder Systems Kenyan Chapter that will see the government 3.4 million spend US Dollars in the next 10 years to bridge 33 million metric tonnes feed and fodder deficit.  

Mutua said the land for the project had already been identified and will employ climate smart agriculture to produce quality animal feeds benefit to benefit over 3 million small –holder farmers, especially women to grow feed and fodder that the country needs. The livestock health expert from the Livestock department said matter livestock feed and fodder in the country are dire and needs serious interventions and the issue of pots- harvest losses addressed. 

“We need to focus on self- sufficiency as far as matters livestock feeds and fodder and concerned and we need to produce more as we focus on strategic supply and production- seeds, fertilizer and agrochemicals for this production, “Dr. Mutua stated.

He in the same breath observed that the country needs to scale up production from small scale to large scale which requires mechanisation in order to make the country self-sufficient in livestock feed and fodder production.

“We will also invest in feed storage and conservation to avoid wastage and value addition for enhanced utilization as we create linkages between the producers and consumers so that the feed value chain is complete,” Mutua said.

He noted that the government’s national feed strategy will help to address animal feeds and water shortage for livestock, feed quality by looking at energy, oil crops and protein rich feeds, costs, and weak policies and strengthen feed data and information systems to inform better and timely interventions.

 In addition, Dr Mutua said the national government is already implementing various projects for fodder commercialization in the counties to help cushion farmers and other actors in the livestock value chain from adverse effects of climate change such as prolonged droughts, and other global crises such as the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. 

The African Union-Inter African Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) Senior Projects and Programs Officer, Dr Annie Lewa on her part said her organization through the Resilient African Feed and Fodder Systems (RAFFS) project aims at helping the six African states in which its being piloted to develop sufficiency in livestock feed and fodder.

AU-IBAR is mandated to coordinate the development and utilization of animal resource. To this end, Dr. Lewa said the Naivasha was meant to launch the country resilient project and also assessment the gaps in the feed and fodder production so that her organization can address them.

AU-IBAR Secretary General Cecilia Rangwe said based on research, they intend to identify how to build a strong network of women across Africa for the key role in livelihoods and empower them by strengthening women r-un enterprises, and help them source for funding as 70 per cent of agriculture production in Africa is done by women.

Further, the project aims to empower women in the feed and fodder sector, support strategic partnerships, attract investment, and reform policies and institutions to build a more resilient and sustainable feed and fodder industry.

Ms Christine Kalui, President of the African Women in Animal Resources Farming and Agribusiness Network (AWARFA-N) said there's a need to mobilize and involve more women in policy decisions in the feeds and fodder systems.

RAFFS Project is a three-year Emergency/ Short Term Response Project, jointly for AU-IBAR funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the African Union Commission and is mandated to lead and support livestock development across the continent. It is a collaborative effort to address the adverse effects of recent global crises, the triple C's; Covid -19, Climate change shocks, and the Conflict between Russia and Ukraine on African feed and fodder systems.

To this end, working through the African Women in Animal Resources Farming and Agribusiness Network, established under the ambit of AU-IBAR, the action proposes interventions to ensure women’s meaningful inclusion in gainful activities in the feed and fodder sector, and the livestock sourced foods supply chains.

The Project is also designed to stimulate greater understanding of the impact of the recent and on-going crises: covid-19, climate change (drought and flooding) and the Russia-Ukraine conflict, on the feed and fodder sector. 

An estimated 8.9 million livestock, 2,5million of them being in Kenya were lost in the greater horn of Africa alone, during the recent drought that ravaged region for nearly two years thus occasioning a loss to the affected countries totaling to about half a billion US dollars (Sh.70Billion). 

Cameroon, Kenya, Nigeria, Somalia, Uganda and Zimbabwe are the six African Union Member States where the project is being piloted since their livestock has a high contribution to livelihoods, incomes and the economy; and where coordinated action and substantive investment can be quickly mobilized to respond to the shortages.

AU-IBAR's Senior Projects and Programs Officer, Dr. Annie Lewa AU-IBAR said the project presents an opportunity for getting new knowledge and innovations for the feed and fodder sector as it presents an opportunity to look at what innovations can be better utilized to support Livestock Sources Feeds. 

According to Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Kenya's livestock sector accounted for 4.4 percent of the country's Gross Domestic Product equivalent of Sh. 3.4 billion as of 2017 statistics. 

As of 2017 data, the country's animal population comprised 44.6 million poultry, 18.8 million cattle, 26.7 million goats, 18.9 million sheep, 3.2 million camels, 1.9 million donkeys, and 0.5 million pigs.  

According to FAO, Kenya's beef production stands at 588,000 tonnes and cow milk production at 4.1 billion litres per year, and the demand for livestock products is projected to increase exponentially driven by population growth by the year 2050. 

The study titled Future of Livestock in Kenya 2019, shows that by the year 2050, meat and cow milk consumption will increase by 1.4 and 6.6 million tonnes annually respectively.  

Courtesy; KNA