9.5 The livestock sector

9.5.1. Distribution of livestock populations
9.5.2 Livestock output and marketing
9.5.3 Livestock production constraints

9.5.1. Distribution of livestock populations

Livestock represents a major national resource in Alphabeta. The livestock population is comprised of about 10.0 million cattle and 8.5 million sheep and goats. Donkeys and pigs are relatively insignificant in number. Data on poultry in the smallholder system are lacking but surveys indicate that they constitute an important source of protein for rural households. Out of the total cattle population, 11% are grade dairy cattle, bred in the high potential areas of the country for production of meat (4%) and milk (7%). The remaining 89% are indigenous zebu stock.

Approximately one-half of the cattle and one-third of the sheep and goats are concentrated in the better agricultural regions of the country. The remainder are found in the semi-arid and arid pastoral zones, where rainfall is less than 600 mm/year. The livestock industry is divided into traditional and modern commercial sectors. Grade beef cattle are mostly bred on commercial farms. They include stock of European and Asian origin and some local breeds. For dairying, the African smallholder has become important in recent years with a growing number of grade dairy cattle (currently at approximately 0.4 million head) being owned by this group. Table 9.6 gives data on the distribution of livestock units by species, category of ownership and agricultural area potential.

9.5.2 Livestock output and marketing

Although they account for less than 10% of export earnings, livestock products are important domestically, contributing 23% of the gross value of marketed agricultural production (Table 9.4). Of marketed livestock production by value, about 51% consists of stock for slaughter and 35% of dairy products. The remainder is divided among hides, skins, wool and eggs. However, most of the livestock industry is outside the money economy since 75% of milk production, 80% of beef and over 90% of goat and sheep output is consumed on farm, where produced. Thus, livestock make an important contribution to rural nutrition and well-being.

Table 9.6. Distribution of livestock units (LUs), in '000s and percent, respectively, by species and categories of production systems.

	High potential smallholder districts	Agro pastoral districts	Pastoral districts	Large farm districts	Total no. LU	Total no. head
Grade dairy cattle	627.01	85.5	1.5	340.5	1,054.5	703.0
	5.02	0.7	0.0	2.7	8.4
Grade beef cattle	49.0	58.8	-	483.0	590.8	421.4
	0.4	0.5	-	3.8	4.7
Indigenous zebu cattle	3,446.5	2,291.6	3,069.0	-	8,807.1	8,807.1
	27.5	18.3	24.5	-	70.4
Total cattle	4,122.5	2,435.9	3,070.5	823.5	10,452.4	9,931.5
	32.9	19.5	24.5	6.6	83.5
Sheep and goats	311.5	392.5	353.3	53.4	1,110.7	8,545.0
	2.5	3.1	2.8	0.4	8.9
Donkeys	35.5	30.5	115.7	-	181.7	181.7
	0.3	0.2	0.9	-	1.4
Camels	-	-	774.0	-	744.0	516.0
	-	-	6.2	-	6.2
Total livestock	4,469.5	2,858.9	4,313.5	876.9	12,518.8
	35.7	22.8	34.5	7.0	100.0

¹ Calculation of LU = grade dairy cattle x 1.5; grade beef cattle x 1.4; indigenous zebu cattle x 1.0; wool sheep x 0.2; hair sheep and goats x 0.13; donkeys x 1.0; camels x 1.5.

² Per cent of grand total (total livestock x total LU).

In terms of livestock units (LU), cattle are the most important, accounting for about 83% of total LU (Table 9.6), 90% of marketed livestock production and 95% of livestock exports. Meat sold on the world market is offered in chilled or frozen form (which must originate in foot-and-mouth disease-free zones) or canned. With some exceptions, however, rising local demand has contributed to a stagnation of beef exports (Table 9.7).

Table 9.7. Production and disposal of beef by the Meat Marketing Commission.

Year	Total production	Local sales (MT)	Exports chilled or frozen (MT)	Canned (MT)	Percentage of production exported (%)
4	26,219	14,232	2,011	9,976	45.7
5	27,993	15,621	2,680	9,692	44.2
6	26,094	13,611	2,780	9,703	47.8
7	26,905	12,780	3,992	10,133	52.5
8	22,694	11,752	3,068	7,874	48.2
9	19,770	8,374	2,873	8,523	57.6
10	16,600	3,239	3,335	10,026	80.5
11	26,219	5,903	4,457	16,501	78.0

Although beef cattle on commercial ranches constitute only 6% of the total herd, they account for almost half of the official sales for slaughter. An unknown number of cattle are sold through alternative outlets, bypassing the official marketing organisation. Rough estimates suggest that about 20% of cattle are sold through official channels. Surveys indicate that the average slaughter offtake through all channels is approximately 9% annually. This rate is higher for commercial ranches and lower for agropastoralists and smallholders. However, since about 80% of cattle are marketed through unofficial outlets, the official beef offtake rate is only about 3% annually.

9.5.3 Livestock production constraints

The two major constraints to livestock development in the pastoral, agropastoral and smallholder subsectors, in particular, are overgrazing and animal diseases.

Overgrazing is a difficult concept to define precisely since it implies both a given range area's carrying capacity and a given level of livestock productivity. Production systems geared to multiple livestock outputs (draft, milk, meat, customary functions) from the same animal can ordinarily sustain rather higher stocking rates than systems aiming for high productivity in a single output. Although there has been heated controversy around this issue in Alphabeta, a consensus has begun to emerge concerning the magnitude of the problem. On communal lands, a figure of between 30-40% overstocking is now widely accepted. This implies a carrying capacity in these areas of between 5.1 and 5.5 million LU. While estimates of the magnitude of the problem are not available, it is felt that overstocking is serious amongst some smallholders, but not all.

Overstocking provides a major challenge to Alphabeta's livestock development planners. For a long time, acceptance of the cattle complex explanation for large, seemingly low-productivity herds prevailed. Believing that pastoral livestock holders accumulated animals largely for traditional, customary purposes and as a display of wealth, range specialists sought to control numbers through grazing regulations and fines. These aimed to supplement traditional controls on range use. Traditional authority no longer has the legitimacy or effective power it once had, however, and the regulations were widely ignored and had little or no impact on the problem. Livestock economists at AU are arguing that so-called traditional motivations probably play a relatively minor role in pastoralist and agropastoralist stocking decisions. Instead, they are emphasising the economic value that livestock contribute to the household. In the agropastoral system, cattle provide crucial draft power. With an average of less than two oxen per household (and some 30% of households with no cattle at all) most households find their herd size too small. In addition, cows provide milk as a supplement to the household's nutrition, and progeny, sheep and goats provide meat (as do cattle also, infrequently) and livestock sales provide ready cash when needed. Amongst pastoralists, this is particularly important since livestock sales provide them with the cash to purchase other staples. In addition, livestock serve as one of the few repositories of savings open to pastoralists and agropastoralists. The value of bank savings accounts is unable to keep pace with inflation, private land sales in these areas are not sanctioned (although they take place unofficially) and stores and taxis are too "lumpy" to be feasible investments for most households.

Analysis of overstocking now locates the pressure to expand herds in the interaction of low grazing costs (owing to an increasingly free access of communal range, cheap family herding labour and low level of production inputs) and high livestock values. Reinforcing this pressure is the impact of erratic rainfall in the arid and semi-arid regions, which necessitates large herds being built up during good seasons in order to ensure survivors during bad ones.

In addition to overstocking, animal diseases and various parasite infestations cause great economic losses. For the export trade, foot-and-mouth disease, endemic in pastoral areas and difficult to control, remains a major problem. East Coast fever and other tick-borne diseases, measles and internal parasite infestations are also of economic importance.

Important points (9.5) · Livestock contribute 23% to the gross value of' marketed agricultural production in Alphabeta. · Amongst livestock, cattle account for 90% of marketed production and 95% of livestock exports. · Almost one-half of official cattle sales for slaughter comes from commercial ranches, · Although livestock's contribution to export earnings is insignificant, its contribution to rural well-being and domestic income generation is great, · Overgrazing and animal disease problems are major livestock development policy issues.