Africa Rising Annual meeting 14 July 2015 1

Livestock intensification in Malawi

Fanny ChigwaLilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural

Resourcesfancchigwa@yahoo.com

Africa Rising Project Annual Meeting 14 July 2015

Africa Rising Annual meeting 14 July 2015 2

Presentation Outline

• Livestock Population• Constraints to livestock production• Potential of Crop-Livestock production• Opportunities of Crop-Livestock production

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Livestock PopulationsSpecies Total population Person/animal

Goats 5,882,106 3

Cattle 1,316,799 17

Beef cattle 1,252,420 17

Dairy Cattle 64,379 266

Pure dairy cattle 14,710 1214

Dairy Crosses 49,699 340

DAHLD 2014

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Why an increase in Goats

• Interplay of:-• Available Feed resources• Land size• Resilience: Ability to survive under environmental

stress and utilize other feed resources

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Trends in feed resources

• Shortage of grazing land as arable and dambo land is allocated to crop production

• Decline in feed quality and quantity in the dry season (Crude protein in grasses drop from 5.5% to 2.2%)

• Natural trees and multipurpose tree offer alternative feed resources

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Constraints to livestock Production

• Low Productivity: Low milk production which result in low milk consumption

• 4 kg per capita in Malawi • 28.5 kg in Sub-Saharan Africa• 200 kg per WHO recommendations

• Dry season feed shortage• Diseases• Markets

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Constraints to Dairy Production

High Investment

Disease incidence

High veterinary charges

Money for recurring expenses

High feed cost

0% 25% 50% 75% 100%

NorthCentralSouth

% Farms Selecting Item

USAID Trilateral Dairy project 2014

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Potential of Crop-livestock Production

• Manure used as fertilizer in crop fields• Crop residues can be used as livestock feed• Livestock are sold to buy food in periods of

food shortage• Livestock are sold to buy fertilizer or pay for

farm labour• Integration reduces farmer’s risk

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Potential for Crop-Livestock - Agroforestry

• Fodder trees provide crops with:– Leaves supply nutrients to crops

• Fodder trees provide livestock with:– Dietary protein 20-30% whole year– Anti-nutritional factors that reduce methane:

energy loss in rumen fermentation– Minerals: Calcium 1-3%, Phosphorus 0.3-0.5%

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Rumen Methane production and Dry season livestock feeds

Forages Methane ml/200mgDM Std Error

Echinocloa pyramidalis 15.10a 0.35

Pennisetum purpureum (Napier

grass)

12.23b 0.46

Sachrum offisinarum (sugarcane

leaves)

14.53ab 0.35

Arachis hypogea (shells) 13.83ab 0.67

Arachis hypogea (hay) 2.77c 0.49

Rechardia scabra 5.33d 0.65

Acacia anguiststima 4.27cd 0.23

Leucaena leucocephala 3.50cd 0.42a, b, c, d: means on the same column with different superscripts are significantly varied (P < 0.05)

Maselema and Chigwa 2015

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Opportunity for livestock intensification

• Resilience of goat under environmental and nutritional stress

• Ability to reduce mortalities with better management

• MPT’s provides dietary CP to livestock whole year and reduce energy losses when fed at less than 30%

• Existing festivals when there is a high demand of livestock or products e.g Ramadan

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Scope of Master research

• Establishment of drug boxes • Goat husbandry training• Evaluation of local goat feed resources• Feeding trials using MTP to fatten goats for

slaughter and sale in Ramadan festival

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Take home Message

• Livestock trends show an increase in goats• Striving livestock use alternative feed resources

and are resilient• There is a need to promote research on

available feeds resources and emerging production systems

• Livestock production that targets better marketing channels and period will stimulate production