Determinants of pastoralists’ participation in commercial fodder markets for livelihood resilience in drylands of northern Kenya: Case of Isiolo

Abstract

Feed insecurity associated with prolonged and recurrent droughts remains a perennial challenge impeding livestock production and a major source of resource-based conflicts in the drylands of many developing countries such as Kenya. Thus, the emerging fodder markets in the drylands act as a secondary source of livestock feed to augment the natural pastures and hence play a crucial role in meeting the year-round feed requirements of pastoralists. However, little information exists on the factors influencing pastoralists to purchase fodder for their own livestock amid their long-held cultural beliefs in using natural pastures for forage . Using primary household survey data from a multi-stage sample of 201 pastoralists, this study assessed socio-economic and institutional factors that influence the pastoralists' participation in fodder markets in Isiolo County, Kenya. Both descriptive statistics and a Heckman two-step model were applied in data analysis. The findings showed that pastoralists' decisions to purchase fodder are significantly influenced by access to credit, weather and market information, land tenure system, exposure to shocks, off-farm income, age, gender and proximity to towns. The amount of fodder purchased was significantly affected by access to weather information, exposure to shocks and livestock holdings. These results underscore the importance of improving pastoralists' access to prerequisite institutional support services to enhance their access to fodder and livestock markets, basic services and increased integration into the broader market economy.

Effect of uptake of improved seed potato and donor‐funded training on smallholder farmers’ market participation

“…Examples of these studies include Dlamini and Huang (2019), Sala et al. (2020), and Tarekegn et al. (2020).…”

“…Most empirical studies that analyzed household market participation decisions have applied the two-step Heckman process (Heckman, 1979) or Cragg's double-hurdle model (Cragg, 1971) when two levels of decisions are involved. Examples of these studies include Dlamini and Huang (2019), Sala et al (2020), andTarekegn et al (2020). However, in situations where households or individuals have to make three sequential decisions, the decisions cannot be modeled using the double-hurdle model and hence require a triple-hurdle approach.…”

Consequences of Participatory Behavior of Pastoralists on Rangeland Restoration

“…The crisis of forage production in the rangelands due to droughts has made cooperatives play an important role in meeting the forage demands of pastoralists during the grazing season. Accordingly, providing supplementary feed for livestock has become a necessity ( Mohamed Sala et al 2020 ). Adhering to deferred rotation and rest-rotation grazing systems is one of the participatory activities of pastoralists, which was effective in restoring vegetation cover in the study area rangelands.…”

From Field to Feed trough: Examining the Drivers of Feed and Fodder Technologies Uptake among Pastoral Beef Farmers in Kenya

“…Within the Kenyan context, three key categories of TIMPs have gained attention: planted fodder, feed supplementation, and fodder conservation [6,7]. These TIMPs offer innovative solutions to enhance productivity, improve animal health, and mitigate the effects of climate variability.…”