The overall objective of the project is to reduce rural poverty by distributing livestock to very poor herder households and through the development of vegetable production and other income-generating activities. The major focus is on the redistribution of livestock from better-off herders to poor herders.
The
livestock sector was seen as a key to reducing rural poverty in Mongolia
because the ownership of livestock is widespread among poor rural households.
One result of the liberalization of the Mongolian economy was the privatization
of the livestock sector followed by the emergence of households with
insufficient numbers of animals to provide an adequate means of livelihood.
The project was designed to redress this situation through a livestock
redistribution programme that provided additional livestock from rich
to poor herding households as loans in kind. The livestock re-distribution
scheme did not target the poorest segments of the population because
the earlier Mongolian experience showed that herds smaller than 10 bods
(one bod = one cattle or yak or seven sheep) were not viable to ensure
the livelihood of a family in the long term. Therefore, the project
provides loans only to herders with 10 – 20 bods of livestock.
The project is also providing credit to poor non-herder households for the production of vegetables and other income-generating activities, to cover the costs of seeds, tools and fencing. Demonstration plots are to be established with the poorest households so as to improve the replicability effects. In addition, loans are to be provided for income-generating enterprises operated by individuals.
Outcome
Livestock Distribution
Beneficiary household herd sizes have more than doubled, and, on average, milk and wool production have increased three- to fourfold. For the average beneficiary household, this means that enough milk is available for home consumption during the summer and some surplus is produced to make butter and cheese for consumption during the winter and spring. Project reports state that overall income of participating herder households has increased by 1.9 times.
The women beneficiaries appreciate the project support as it led to increased wealth and improved purchasing power. Herders are now able to meet their basic needs such as food, clothing, housing, fuel, water supply, access to education and health services.
Selection of beneficiaries
A very positive impact of the project has been the introduction of participatory method on selecting project beneficiaries. The selection criteria of beneficiaries have been communicated to sub-district level in print and through radio programs. Local project management staff obtains a list of eligible poor households through a participatory ranking exercise, carried out even in the most remote areas. Public and local authorities, including herder group leader, screen the applications, verify the information and finally recommend eligible households for approval by the district poverty alleviation council. From application to approval, the procedure takes between 30–40 days, short period taking into account the complex process, the long distances and the poor communication facilities. The beneficiary him/herself selects the loan animals from a pool of animals that had to pass firstly the “quality check”of the livestock officer.
Access to inputs and infrastructure
| The amount of public funds available for veterinary services has declined. Thus, between 1990 and 1993 the number of vaccinations and parasite treatments fell by 35% and 65%, respectively. Herders are now requested to pay the cost of treating individual animals. The German Agency for Technical Cooperation and the European Union has funded national projects to strengthen veterinary services. Cost-recovery measures were made fully effective, but failed to halt the decline in vaccination coverage and parasite treatments in the project area. |
||
| Planned |
Achieved |
|
| To finance vaccines and parasite control for the project animals. The target was for vaccinations and parasite treatments to reach 1990 levels. To finance the purchase of female breeding animals
(cattle, yaks and sheep), using traders or companies for procurement
and for distribution on credit to poor herding households. |
The project has financed enterotoxemia vaccination to project animals in Arhangai province. In Huvsgul the project animals are de-wormed with ivermectin twice a year. The livestock re-distribution component is proceeding on schedule: the herd sizes of project households have more than doubled and milk and wool production have more than tripled. However, the poorest segments of society were not included. Various training sessions have been organised to project staff and beneficiary herders. A total of 1567 people were involved. The training covered the following subjects: participatory beneficiary selection, training for trainers, animal husbandry, breeding and winter preparation including hay making. |
|
| Due to the liberalization of the livestock sector, the herders bear all the risks related to their activities. Main risks in livestock production are extreme weather conditions (droughts and harsh winters) and endemic diseases. Drought causes fodder scarcity and complicates hay preparing for the winter period. Animals loose their condition and are not strong enough to survive through the following winter. |
||
| Planned |
Achieved |
|
| To prefinance the livestock insurance premiums for animals distributed by the project until such time as the loans have been repaid, deducting the premiums from the sale price of the recovered animals. To improve winter hay production. |
This mode of insurance premium payment proved to be impractical. The project now insures the animals for the first year and the beneficiaries are responsible thereafter. Unfortunately it was noted by Supervision mission 2003 that most of the beneficiaries do not insure their animals. The premiums are high and attempts to negotiate with the insurance company have so far been unsatisfactory. Since the winter disasters of the last years caused the death of a high numbers of animals, the national insurance company was overwhelmed with requests of refunding of insured livestock. It is reported that the insurance has paid out only up to 70%of the real value of the animal. Since this is not in line with the insurance contract it has been contested by the Project; supported by the Government. The Project sells hay making implements to interested beneficiaries. After the frequent winter disasters, herders are very keen to obtain this equipment. Reportedly, hay making has increased by a factor
2 to 3 in the project area. |
|
| Traditional rangeland management practices have developed over the centuries and, in general, provide a satisfactory system for allocating grazing and hay cutting areas among herders, and leads to few disputes. The sub-district administrative level usually resolves any disputes that occur and represents the key unit for the allocation of range resources and for range management. At the time of appraisal in 1996, a new land law was implemented. This law provided for long-term leases for winter/spring grazing areas, hay land and the designation and management of emergency grazing areas. Implementation of the law aimed at ensuring good range management and availability of hay supplies at the level of the tent group herder. In addition, it allowed for the collection of grazing fees, even though the necessary enabling legislation has yet to be put in place. The rationale for the grazing fees was to encourage herders to reduce grazing pressure on rangeland close to the district and provincial centres. The land law did not address fully the needs of the herding
community and it was repeatedly discussed in the Mongolian parliament
during the last years. The last amendment of the law was issued
by the Parliament in 2002. The new legislation on land use and
land ownership has been spelled out more clearly. |
||
| Planned |
Achieved |
|
| To redistribute livestock so as to support sustainable management of available rangeland. The strategy was to purchase livestock from large herders within the project area and to resell it to eligible small herders. Households eligible for a restocking loan and living at the district or provincial centre were required to relocate permanently, with their animals, to the rural area from which they had come originated and to adopt traditional grazing management techniques (i.e. movement between spring, summer, autumn and winter pastures). To establish a Rangeland management and monitoring system to avoid the detrimental effects of increased livestock production on currently stable rangelands. To encourage the Mongolian Government to introduce mechanisms
to control livestock numbers and monitor the condition of the
pasture on a regular basis, and to review a system for licensing
animals. |
There is evidence of a breakdown in the customary relationships that regulate pasture usage as a result of the many newcomers to herding. Conflicts over access to pasture are becoming more frequent and herders appear to be reluctant to leave their traditional camps and pasture areas for fear of encroachment by newcomers. There is a general pattern of over-concentration of animals close to the district centres as populations move nearer to health and education services and basic supplies. This has led to land degradation in some overstocked sub-districts, while less populated sub-districts remain understocked. The PIU (Project Implementation Unit) commissioned the Provincial Land Management Office to review the pasture situation in all project districts. Initial results of this survey that was undertaken in 2001 found that pasture was overgrazed in four districts. The Supervision Mission 2001 recommended that the project should only continue to disburse animals in districts where pasture is not obviously overused. The PIUs with assistance of Centre for Nomadic and Pastoralism Studies have carried out an assessment study on the carrying capacity of rangelands and prepared mapping at district and provincial level. The village level mapping exercise is yet to be carried out. A nation-wide livestock and Rangeland monitoring system is
still under discussion. |
|
- A major lesson learned was the need for better support services and a stronger focus on disaster preparedness to ensure sustainability of the re-distribution impact. The vulnerability of poor households to natural and economic risks needs to be addressed. Risk management programmes would include livestock insurance, winter fodder production, improved animal health services and marketing training.
- Although livestock redistribution is a successful approach to poverty alleviation in the pastoral areas the poorest herding households cannot be reached. In most cases the herd size of these very poor households is far below the viability threshold, and therefore repayments associated with restocking would be too large and would become a burden to cope with.
- Loan sizes and eligibility criteria need to be reviewed frequently in the light of changing terms of trade and the upward movement of the poverty line, so as to ensure that viable herds are built up.
- Livestock provides the basis for strengthening the resilience of pastoral households. Maintaining the traditional pastoral system has prevented widespread degradation of rangelands. In any restocking programme, care must be taken to avoid introducing an unsustainable number of households to herding. The distribution of animals was linked to the condition that herders should take the stock far away from rural centres. However, further incentives, such as mobile livestock support and social services, may be required. A rangeland monitoring system should be established to ensure the appropriate use of rangelands. It is critical that herders are involved in the implementation and maintenance of a Rangeland management system. The local political institutions could act as supervising bodies.
Best practice: The project endeavoured to identify the local knowledge on livestock management and mainstream the same into the program. The project tried out an innovative approach of attaching the new herders to the traditional herders. This proved useful because the new herders were able to obtain insights into local knowledge on livestock management. Some of the best practises on breeding, haymaking, winter shelter preparation, maintaining water sources, etc, have been codified in the form of a Training Manual in consultation with the traditional herders and village leaders.
