Investment options for integrating water management and crop and livestock
production in sub-Saharan Africa
Prepared by
D. Peden, A. Freeman, A. Astatke,
A. Notenbaert & D. Sheikh
International Livestock Research InstituteIn collaboration with the
International Water Management Institute& the
Challenge Program on Water and Food
For the CA Workshop on Community-based irrigation 14-16 March 2005,
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
CA-March 2005
Outline
• Bad press, neglect, and myths or half truth?
• Reasons to invest in water for livestock.
• Principles for investing in water for livestock.
• Where to invest in water for livestock or livestock-water development domains.
• Example investment options.
• Some technology-policy lessons learned.
CA-March 2005
Investing in water to support livestock sector growth in sub-Saharan Africa
BBC(16 August 2004)
“… growth in demand for meat and dairy
products is unsustainable”
A widely held view:
Stockholm World Water Week:
ATPS - 2004
Investing in water to support livestock sector growth in sub-Saharan Africa
BBC(16 August 2004)
A widely held view:
Stockholm World Water Week:
but, is this true?
CA-March 2005
Neglect• Few irrigation systems plan for livestock, but
agricultural water attracts animals.• Examples:
– Gezira’s 800 thousand hectares now supports 1,700,000 million animals, but no policy or planning for first 60 years.
– Irrigation often produces much crop residue, but potential for animal production often ignored in irrigation planning.
– Without watering facilities, animals drink from primary water sources degrading water and adjacent land and jeopardizing human health.
– Agricultural water development often marginalizes pastoralists
– Planning rare for coping with water borne and zoonotic animal diseases.
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Is overgrazing the primary cause of land degradation in Sub-Saharan Africa?
Myth or reality?
Effect of annual cropping vs grazing on soil loss in Ethiopia
Area (%)
Soil loss (%)
Annual cropland
13 45
Grazing land
51 21
At least partly a myth!Source: Hurni, 1989
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Reasons to invest in water for livestock
• Help achieve MDGs (2015): – 50% cut in poverty– 50% cut in hunger.
• Safeguard assets: livestock are key assets.• Enable child nutrition for physical & mental growth.• Enable access to expanding urban markets for
high value animal products.• Protect water resources through better husbandry.• Support animal power: an alternative to petroleum.• Increase water productivity.• Reduce potential for conflict.
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Reasons to invest in water for livestock
Trends to 2025 Meat & Milk consumption in SSA expected to increase
Country
group
Annual growth
(%)
Per capita consumption (Kg/person)
Meat Developed 0.6 83 Developing 2.8 30
SSA 3.5 11
Milk Developed 0.2 189
Developing 3.3 62
SSA 3.8 30 Source: Delgado et al., 1999
The “Hungry” world will still eat less meat!
•Ethics•Demand
•Distribution
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Reasons to invest in water for livestock
Trends to 2025Meat & Milk consumption in SSA expected to increase
Country
group
Annual growth
(%)
Per capita consumption (Kg/person)
Meat Developed 0.6 83 Developing 2.8 30
SSA 3.5 11
Milk Developed 0.2 189
Developing 3.3 62
SSA 3.8 30 Source: Delgado et al., 1999
Need for policy and institutions to enable poor
smallholder farmers to engage in markets.
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Reasons to invest in water for livestock
We also need multi-sectoral policy and technology grounded in science to ensure that livestock production contributes to rather than prevents sustainable use of water resources.
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Principles investing for livestock sector growth
• Promote multiple benefits (Dairy, meat, wealth, power, risk avoidance, cultural values plus non-livestock outputs).
• Consider spatial variability (Pastoral, mixed crop-livestock, & urban, rainfed & irrigated production systems).
• Promote better animal management to reduce degradation of water and land.• Increase livestock water productivity.• Integrated assessment of demographic and market trends, production systems and available water to determine where best bet interventions should be made.
CA-March 2005
Where to invest in water for livestock? 15 Water-Livestock
Development Domains
Ag. Production systems
Available Discret. water Market access
Human pop. density
Plus Urban livestockCA-March 2005
Water development domains:Example 1
• Mixed crop-livestock
• High pop. density
• Good market access
• Low availability of Discretionary water
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Mixed crop-livestockHigh pop. DensityGood market accessDiscretionary water low
SSA: No. of countries 40
Area (km2 millions) 1.4
Population 2002 (millions) 221
Population 2030 (millions) 381
TLUs (millions) 37
Example Water Development Domain(Small area, but many users compete for water)
RwandaKenyaUgandaBurundi
EthiopiaNigeria
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Example Water Development Domain
Mixed crop-livestockHigh pop. DensityGood market accessDiscretionary water low
Ethiopia
Ethiopian part of domain: Area (km2 millions) 0.13
Population 2002 (millions) 21.4
Population 2030 (millions) 43.3
TLUs (millions) 6.4 CA-March 2005
Water harvesting and livestock: Belatu’s story(Preliminary results - Sasakawa Global 2000 & ILRI collaboration)
1997: Subsistence & family income less than $50/year
CA-March 2005
NOW:• 2 underground tanks @ 65 m3
• $1500; year round; multiple sources.• Crops: 2 or 3 per year.• Garlic, onion, tomatoes .• Milk: From <1 to 20 l/day• Up to 6 $/day with value added.
SUCCESS FACTORS:• Intensified command area agric.• Market access.• More effective use of labour.• Value added production (milk).• WH increased rainfed dairy LWP.• Household was educated.
Water harvesting and livestock: Belatu’s story(Preliminary results - Sasakawa Global 2000 & ILRI collaboration)
1997: Subsistence & family income less than $50/year
CA-March 2005
• Main pathways out of poverty:• Securing assets, production, income
WDD: Crop-livestock, High pop. density, Good market, Little H20
• Some key Issues:• Extreme poverty & hunger• Access to quality water & feed• Drought & vulnerability• Siltation of reservoirs• Inefficient use of water• Water borne diseases
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WDD: Crop-livestock, High pop. density, Good market, Little H20
Priority water investment options:• Example technologies:
– Including drinking troughs in existing and planned dams, ponds & diversions.– Design water harvesting with feed production options by using catchment production and food-feed crops.– Piped water for smallholder dairying.
• Institutions:– Support for Community-based IWRM– Water associations could partner with livestock and other sectors in planning water infra-structure development. CA-March 2005
Complementary non-water investment options:
• Example technologies:– Conservation tillage– Zero-grazing– Control of helminthes (fasciola) & snails
• Institutions:– Support for Community-based NRM– Marketing mechanisms (eg., Dairy coops)
WDD: Crop-livestock, High pop. density, Good market, Little H20
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WDD: Crop-livestock, High pop. density, Good market, Little H20
• Example policy options– Encourage collective and joint management of water and grazing resources.– Development institutions accept legitimacy of the “livestock production option”.– Water pricing & demand management– Zoning for animal keeping.– Market development
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Example impacts:
• Conservation tillage in SSA:– reduced use of oxen could reduce water used for feed by 20 billion m3/yr assuming 50% comes from residue.
WDD: Crop-livestock, High pop. density, Good market, Little H20
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Example impacts:• Increased water productivity by
feeding crop residue to animals because no extra water is used.
WDD: Crop-livestock, High pop. density, Good market, Little H20
Teff for feed
Feed source H2O depleted
(m3/TLU/year)
Crop residue only 0
Forage crops only 450
• But, protect soil by returning some residue and manure.
Teff for FeedCA-March 2005
WDD: Crop-livestock, High pop. density, Good market, Little H20
Kenya
EthiopiaNigeria
Smallholder dairy production in Kenya increased by 60% per animal by continuous provision of drinking water
CA-March 2005
Example impacts:• Increased water productivity
triggered by provision of drinking water for animals.
Some lessons learned
• Opportunities lost because of lack of integration of livestock into water planning and development.
• Investing in water for livestock may be effective in reducing poverty and overcome vulnerability of the poor.
• Needs:– Multi-sectoral & multi-regional approach.– Balanced mix of supply & demand management.– Effective use of existing technology and knowledge.– Effective inclusion of communities and all stakeholders.– Gender and ethnic equity.
• This does not mean simply increasing meat consumption to the level of “western diets”.
• Significant increases in water productivity possible.CA-March 2005
Final thought: Introduction of rainfed and irrigated cropping must anticipate and mitigate conflict with
pastoralists – an African-wide problem
• “Conflict … rooted in the soil.• 6 Million African farmers & Arab
herders.• Graziers migrate from arid North
to South after August rains.• Traditional tribal laws settled
conflict & people co-existed.• Persistent drought in 1980s
forced Arabs into arable land.• Competition for turf turned
violent.
4 Oct 2004
What policies and technologies are needed?CA-March 2005
Thank you
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