The objectives of the project were to improve household food security and increase the incomes of farm families with below-average productive assets, and to promote elimination of opium poppy cultivation in Xieng Khouang province. This was to be achieved by providing alternative livelihoods. The livestock component was intended to increase the number of productive animals controlled by small farmers.
The
project aimed to support livestock development by:
- establishing cattle banks to distribute heifers;
- distributing yearling bulls for fattening;
- providing cold-chain facilities for vaccine supply;
- supporting cattle vaccination and disseminating information;
- supporting pasture and forage development;
- providing formal credit facilities for raising cattle and draught buffalo in lowland areas;
- providing technical assistance and training; and
- supporting institutional capacity-building.
At project closure, the impact on beneficiaries was negligible. Reproductive performance and calf survival among cattle-bank animals were low, although vaccinations had reduced animal mortality and increased farmer awareness. Vaccination of small livestock and attempts to privatize vaccine sales proved unsuccessful, however. Use of anthelmintics increased as a result of encouragement in the project; some research into animal health and nutrition was carried out.
Cattle manure distributed by the project made a major contribution to agricultural production. Extension activities generated few identifiable benefits, however, because the technologies introduced have not been generally adopted.
Cattle-bank schemes experienced poor repayment rates, mainly because of the long period before loans could be reimbursed with animals, and especially because productivity parameters and their implications were not fully understood. Farmers who obtained formal credit made more profit than those using the cattle banks, because the terms of repayment were clearly understood. They managed their livestock better and were able to refund loans by raising money through other activities.
| Agricultural institutions were constrained by:
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| Planned |
Achieved |
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| To provide training for farmers and project staff in livestock management, health and nutrition. To provide support facilities aimed at institutional strengthening. |
Twenty-one project staff were trained in subjects related to livestock
production. About 500 farmers received training in vaccination,
deworming and urea treatment of straw. A livestock specialist was employed between 1992 and 1995, conducting some fieldwork and supporting the mineral-block programmes. Technical assistance was provided in pasture development, trials of new pasture species, cattle procurement and extension. |
|
Access to inputs and infrastructure
| Livestock
is a major economic activity in the province recovering after
that traditional cattle raising was wiped out by the war (Viet
Nam war, 1965-1975). |
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| Planned | Achieved | |
| To establish a cattle bank to distribute 3 000 heifers and redistribute their offspring for breeding and fattening under a Credit scheme. To distribute 500 grower steers for fattening, the sale proceeds of finished animals to be shared between the project and beneficiaries. To provide formal credit for raising cattle and small stock, and for draught animals. |
In 1997, 2 769 cows, 376 calves and 107 bulls for breeding purposes had been distributed through 39 cattle banks to 863 farm families. The cattle-bank scheme was popular but expensive to operate; the productivity of the animals was low, causing repayment difficulties. No steers were allocated to the fattening programme, because there was no local market demand for finished beef and because few calves were produced by cattle-bank cows. Cattle-bank animals from which fattener steers were to have been produced were located in the savannah area, where grain was scarce; surplus grain in the lowlands was being used as pig and poultry feed. Formal credit was obtained by 146 households for cattle raising and draught animals; 55 households benefited from credit for pig and turkey raising. Farmers agreed that formal livestock was a better option than receiving animals from cattle banks, but this may have been a function of selection. |
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There is a severe shortage of forage. Grass cover in upland areas is reduced by grazing, and the savannah grazing land in the western part of the province is deficient in phosphorus. |
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Planned |
Achieved |
|
| To finance production of about 1.5 tonnes (t) of mineral blocks for demonstration purposes, with the objective of encouraging villagers to contribute to a fund that would enable cattle banks to continue to manufacture and use them.
To establish grass and legume plots at three district training,
trials and demonstration centres, and facilitate forage production
trials at all six centres; to establish six village trial/demonstration
plots for forage crops, grass and legumes; and to carry out upgrading-by-oversowing
trials in savannah areas to determine whether the pastures could
be improved. |
Urea treatment of straw and manufacture and use of mineral blocks and bone meal as phosphorus supplements for cattle, buffalo and pigs were shown in village trials and training in pasture establishment in 1994. Few villages made mineral blocks or bone meal after the demonstrations, however; none have adopted the technology for urea treatment of straw. The Laet Saen government farm bought 5 t of the 5.6 t of mineral blocks produced in 1995; livestock raisers bought only the remaining half ton.
During 1993-1994, 66 pasture varieties including 12 cool-season
varieties were tested in two training centres and 25 locations
in six districts; several species suitable for distribution were
identified. Pasture demonstration plots were established in six
cattle-bank villages in 1996. Pasture species were distributed
to 35 farmers in Pek, Phaxay and Phoukout districts; 12 farmers
in three villages were provided with elephant grass cuttings to
establish 400 m2 fenced plots. |
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| Planned |
|
Achieved |
| To establish an animal health service with cold-chain facilities for supplying drugs. To carry out vaccinations of cattle, pigs and poultry. To
support the dissemination of information on animal health and
production. |
Refrigerators, vaccination equipment and transport containers were provided to provincial and district offices to facilitate greater vaccination coverage, primarily in cattle-bank villages. Revolving funds were established for vaccine procurement in six cattle-bank villages. Attempts to privatize vaccine sales were unsuccessful because:
Training in vaccination and animal health and production subjects was provided to 305 village veterinary workers; they were supplied with vaccination equipment and extension manuals. They received support in administering vaccinations at cattle banks, which reduced animal mortality and increased farmer awareness of the advantages of regular vaccination. The veterinary workers vaccinated cattle and buffalo against haemorrhagic septicaemia and black quarter, and pigs and poultry against other diseases. By 1993, only 273 chickens had been vaccinated. In Nong Het district alone, however, 1 870 birds were vaccinated in 1994 and 1 588 in 1995. Vaccination of small livestock was unfortunately not particularly successful: there was no in-depth study of existing diseases, so birds vaccinated against Newcastle disease still died from fowl cholera.
The project successfully promoted the use of anthelmintics (piperazine
treatment) for calves. Although not envisaged at appraisal, a
diagnostic laboratory was established at Phonsavanh to support
an investigation into the causes of cattle under-performance.
The investigation was instrumental in identifying the causes of
lameness and reproductive disorders and developing techniques
of nutritional supplementation. |
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Free-ranging animals, the cost of fences, control of common pastures and farmers’ preferences for herd size over production efficiency were significant constraints on effective pasture management and establishment of dry-season grazing reserves.
- It is important to ensure that project beneficiaries perceive group participation as a permanent process that will support other development activities, not merely as a means of obtaining assistance.
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The poorest rural households should be given priority in targeting criteria for livestock credit.
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Targeted cash credit accompanied by full explanation of repayment terms would be a more appropriate method of financing livestock in future projects.
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Focusing on improved production of small stock such as poultry and pigs, which are owned by almost all households, would generate broader benefits than focusing on cattle.
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Per-head performance should be improved to increase long-term productivity. Raising large numbers of animals is unlikely to improve production where animal health services and feed resources are limited and animal husbandry practices are poor.
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Privatization of veterinary services should be a coordinated and gradual process, complemented by full government commitment and pioneered in areas where there are maximum opportunities for success.
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Adoption of new livestock technologies depends on the appropriateness of the technologies and adequate technical assistance, extension support and follow-up by field staff.
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Factors such as market demand, availability of feed and sources of animals should be analysed before project components are designed.
Cattle-bank scheme (credit-in-kind). The intended beneficiaries were families without cattle living in savannah areas and families with no animals living in lowland rice-growing areas. The cattle banks were to provide heifers to a small group of farmers who would rear them for about five years and then return them. Male calves produced during the five years would be kept for 18-24 months and then given to the project; the farmers would keep female calves. Farmers without animals would receive the first calves. Participation in the scheme would be conditional on vaccination of the cattle and in some areas on the establishment of pasture or legume plots. The scheme was intended to be self-financing: the sale of returned cattle would cover the cost of the heifers and operation of the cattle banks.
The cattle banks were also to distribute 500 yearling bulls to families for fattening. These animals, which would be given to families for one year, would come from the return of bulls in the main operation. After fattening, the animals would be sold; the family would retain 60% of the sale price and the cattle bank 40%.
Summary of appraisal and actual cattle- banks’ dstribution and performance: appraisal targets and actual performance
| Appraisal targets |
Actual performance |
|
| Cows distributed |
|
|
| Pek and phoukout |
2 700 |
2 769 |
| Other districts |
1 092 |
|
| Calves surviving |
6 164 |
2 899 |
| Calf mortality (%) |
8 |
20 |
| Adult mortality (%) |
3 |
10 |
| Cattle-bank groups |
452 |
39 |
| Households in cattle-bank groups |
4 250 |
863 |
Livestock credit provided by the Agricultural Promotion Bank
The project provided credit for livestock through the Agricultural Promotion Bank. Short- to medium-term loans were to be provided for cattle, draught buffalo, pigs and turkeys. Loans were to be made only to groups because individuals, particularly the IFAD target group, did not have the collateral required by the bank. The bank financed cattle raising and draught buffalo in lowland areas where livestock feed is more readily available. Credit was also provided for pig and turkey raising.
| Loan purpose |
Total number of loans |
| Cattle raising |
68 |
| Draught animals |
78 |
| Pig rRaising |
46 |
| Turkey raising |
6 |
