Goat keeping proves success for Kenyan farmers

Goat keeping proves success
for Kenyan farmers

massive education campaigns on goat improvement using
Galla breeding bucks in an effort to reverse the trend

SPECIAL REPORT BY XINHUA CORRESPONDENT Ejidiah Wangui
.

NAIROBI (Xinhua) -- With diminishing land size coupled with increased population and rampant cattle rustling, farmers in Baringo County are embracing Dairy Goat keeping for food security and poverty reduction.

The enterprise which is a cheap source of protein and income at the household level is being promoted through the ministry of Livestock Development and other stakeholders.

The Dairy Goats introduced into the district in the past two years by two leading NGOS operating in the region, World Vision International (WVI) and Christian Children Fund (CCF) have become more popular with farmers especially in the highlands.

The nongovernmental organizations working mostly with the poverty stricken members of the society have continued to play a key role in the promotion of dairy goat rearing in the area.

Prior to the introduction of the improved goat breeds, the livestock sub sector in the County had been dominated by the Small East African goat whose production in terms of milk and meat has remained low.

According to a report from the Ministry of Livestock Production inbreeding which has been practiced by farmers for a long time has resulted in the emergence of small bodied goats in the district.

Through intensive promotion of the dairy goats, the population of the new breed has increased tremendously and so far there are 2, 295 dairy goats in the four divisions of Baringo Central.

District Livestock development officer Richard Bundotich in his annual report for last year indicate that Kabarnet division leads in the population of dairy goats with 1,680 animals followed by Sacho with 270, Salawa with 230 and Tenges in the fourth position with 115 goats.

Bundotich said the department has carried out massive education campaigns on goat improvement using Galla breeding bucks in an effort to reverse the trend.

Dairy goat farmer, James Kurui Limo, a retired security officer with 15 goats, says he started dairy farming in 2006 after borrowing the idea from Obai Progressive Self Help Group, an initiative of Njaa Marufuku Kenya.

“We were twenty members and each of us was given 10 goats each costing 12,000 shillings and from then I have never turned back,” he says with a lot of smile.

Limo, also a proud owner of dairy cows, says currently he has 15 dairy goats out of which five are giving him three litres of milk per day. “Each litre of goat milk goes for 100 shillings unlike cow milk which retails at between 30 shillings and 40 shillings due to its high nutritive value,” he adds.

The father of eight says since he started the project he has sold 15 goats fetching good money.

“I like the goats because they give birth twice a year and if you are lucky to get all of them females then you will always smile all the way to the bank because each of them goes for  15, 000 shillings,” Limo with his beloved wife Anne Kurui standing behind him explains.

He says dairy goats mature after seven months compared to indigenous breeds which take more than a year to reach maturity.

The retired officer says he uses the money accruing from the sale of the dairy goats and their products to pay fees for his five children in various learning institutions apart from paying his farm workers.

Limo who encourages other local farmers to adopt the new enterprises says that dairy goat project is easy to start since it only requires small capital outlay and materials for setting the structures area readily available.

He added that incase of disease outbreaks, dairy goats are easy to treat since they have been trained by livestock extension officers on how to vaccinate the goats against rampant diseases every six months.

“Twenty litres of acaricides is enough to spray 15 animals which I find very affordable,” Limo maintains.

The county commissioner Bernard Leparmarai recently urged local livestock farmers in the county to diversify into other emerging livestock production like poultry, beekeeping, camel rearing and fish as they can significantly boost their farm incomes.

The commissioner also urged the farmers to make use of livestock extension services to exploit the huge potential in the region to expand their economic base and boost their incomes at household levels.

Leparmarai noted with satisfaction that the inland water lakes in the county can be used for fish production besides the huge potential existing on individual farm holdings.

The government, he stated, last year under the fish farming enterprise productivity program of the Economic Stimulus Project allocated 30 million to promote fish farming through fish ponds construction in the county.

“I therefore urge you to commercialize your fishing activities in order to take advantage of these opportunities,” Leparmarai advised the farmers.