GOVERNMENT FOSTERS ANIMAL HEALTH IN KATETE

Anderson Banda - one of the two forage seed growers in Katete

In 2012, the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock (then the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock) projected that the demand for beef would increase from  120,000 metric tons in 2012, to 600,000 by 2027 (www.ageconsearch.umn.edu ) It was further projected that with the then prevailing production and marketing conditions, there would be a supply gap of approximately 320,000 metric tons. As such it was inevitable that strategies be established to enable small scale cattle farmers step-up and meet the demand deficit which was identified.

Some of the objectives would include improving the quality of cattle being reared so as to assure quality beef and; also to rear these cattle in a climate-friendly manner.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), about 42% of livestock contributions to climate change is from enteric fermentation

"Our destiny is to serve our farmers," FAO Zambia Rep's Farewell Message to Zambia

Dr George Okechi (far left) has served as FAO Zambia Country Representative since 2013

Having served as FAO Country rep to Zambia for 7 years, one can be tempted to forget that the day would come for Dr. George Okech to bid farewell and proceed to the next best thing that life has to offer him.

Having chosen a career in veterinary medicine, Dr. Okech noticed a disconnect between research findings and the information that was filtering into farming community. It is from here that his passion to make a difference in the livestock subsector grew.

“I really wanted to research ideas to really get into the communities…once you get results from the research institutions, they need to be disseminated by extension officers which we call transfer of technology…So I decided for myself that I really wanted to go and be that part of the transfer of knowledge,” Dr. Okech said.

This drive to share knowledge led him to leave his then job as a civil servant in Kenya and join OXFAM who appointed him to work in South Sudan as a Food Security Coordinator with a bias towards the livelihood aspect that is related to livestock production.

After 3 years, he was recruited by FAO in 2001.

Diary of a Fieldworker

70km away from Nakonde town, rice farming is improving household food & nutrition security; and income generation

Luapula river at sunset

CLOSING THE GENDER GAP IN AGRICULTURE

The 2020 International Women’s Day commemorations brought into focus a concerning fact – that 25 years after the World Conference on Women, “No country  has reached the ‘last mile’ on gender equality,” as blatantly noted in the 2019 Global Index.

The 2020 Global Gender Gap report adds a more dismal fact - that it will take 99.5 years for the world to achieve the gender parity it wishes to see and that’s only if countries start making necessary changes now.

Inability to meet gender equality goals entails that progress in spheres where women are key such as improving food and nutrition security, is also being stalled because women are not being given sufficient access to the tools

FARMER REGISTRATION - A NECESSARY TOOL FOR PLANNING

Farmer registration is a prerequisite for e-extension services

"I woke up one morning and found my farm had been attacked by army worms. I tried to get rid of them manually but it was too much work for me. So I phoned our camp officer who came with the chemicals and treated my field…Through my mobile phone, I can reach my camp officer wherever he is and I’m able to get quick solutions to whatever problem I have.”  

This scenario narrated by Chiponde Kunda a small scale farmer in Luapula underway is gradually becoming a common phenomenon in rural farming communities. More and more farmers like are able to maintain linkages with their extension service workers via the mobile phone.