Tropentag, September 18 - 20, 2019 in Kassel "Filling gaps and removing traps for sustainable resources development"

Farmers' Desired Attributes for Community Owned Persons for Integration in Trypanosomiasis Control Programs in Kenya

¹University of Nairobi, Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Kenya
²International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (ICIPE), Social Science and Impact Assessment, Kenya

Abstract

Animal trypanosomiasis is a major constraint to livestock production and a threat to food security in most parts of sub-Sahara Africa (SSA). Smallholder farmers are particularly affected because access to veterinary services is limited in most cases. While efforts have been made to control the spread and prevalence of the disease in Kenya, for instance, through the use of traps, repellents and drugs, the disease continues to cause losses to livestock producers. These losses include reduced meat and milk off take, weight loss, reduced traction power of oxen, high calf mortality and overall cost of livestock management. Subsequently, with the current insufficient extension and veterinary services in the country, farmers in endemic areas resort to presumptive and indiscriminate drug administration thus increasing the risks of drug resistance. Integrating communities into tsetse and trypanosomiasis control programs as a way to tackle these challenges has become an important consideration in the development policy agenda in SSA. This approach proposes recruiting and training a pool of community owned resource persons (CORPs) to address the insufficient veterinary and extension services and subsequently reduce cases of drug resistance. Further, CORPs are believed to be vital in facilitating technology transfer to farmers. However, the desired attributes of the CORPs by farmers are not known. This paper applied choice experiment (CE) method to assess the farmers' desired attributes for CORPs in Kwale County, Kenya. A random parameter logit (RPL) model was used to analyse the CE data. The analysis reveals that a CORP must have secondary school education and be a permanent resident of the community. Further, age, marital status, training partner, and recruitment process, are all significant attributes that influence integration of CORPs in trypanosomiasis control programs. The findings call for an integrated approach where CORPs are recruited and trained based of farmers' preferences.

Keywords: Choice experiment, CORPs, farmers, losses, trypanosomiasis

Contact Address: Arnold Musungu, University of Nairobi, Dept. of Agricultural Economics, Nairobi, Kenya, e-mail: musunguarnold8gmail.com