For sustained development of poultry and livestock
Saturday, 16 August 2008
THE culling of poultry birds in the farms from the last bird-flu threat caused the biggest sustained loss to an economic sector since the independence of the country. Farmers are reportedly not rearing layer chickens out of a fear of bird-flu virus again reappearing in the coming winter months in the cold conditions. This is likely to lead to persistence of the price-rise phenomenon relating to both eggs and chickens in the retail market. These are, in no way, welcome news for an area of economic activity which has been holding out a lot of promise in recent years from its relatively fast growing nature. On a wider scale, both livestock and poultry sectors, encompassing a large number of poultry farms, dairies and related enterprises, has been also expanding in recent years. This has created incomes and jobs where the same count the most - at the grassroots. Poor women, unemployed youth in the countryside and others in the vast population have been adding impressively to the country's total gross domestic product (GDP) as well as creating large scale regular employment, part-time employment and self-employment from the expansion of this sector as a whole.
But bird flu came as a severely stunting phenomenon in the otherwise favourable development of the poultry sub-sector in particular. Analysis has shown that the national GDP has been declining considerably, particularly since the last fiscal, from this factor. The GDP would be higher if the flu-related losses could be prevented or minimised. Therefore, it is extremely important for the government to be proactive to take all measures to head-off another major reverse in the poultry sub-sector. The poultry farmers themselves bear primary responsibility for the safety of their farms. But the government's responsibility must not be limited to culling the poultry birds once the disease breaks out or to pay only a partial compensation for the culled birds. The government policies must be in tandem with the steps taken by the poultry farmers to help build an environment of greater safety against the disease. Surveillance of the farms to ensure that their operators unfailingly do practise safety measures would be a good input from the government. Training the farmers in such practices and supplying them with safety gears, would be another major input. Of course, the safety gears will have to be purchased by the farmers. But distributing them in a manner that every farm gets them and that workers in each farm get trained and motivated in their use, ought to be the responsibility of the relevant ministry.
As for the wider livestock sector, the government certainly needs to play a stronger role than it so far has, to encourage positive developments. Initiatives are noted more at grass-roots level to set up small dairies. But these enterprises in many cases suffer from lack of seed fund, working capital, and veterinary services. In each of these areas, the government can be a source of inspiration and strength for these small dairies. The state-operated banks can run programmes exclusively to finance the needs of such small dairies supplying them with basic capital as well as working capital. The government runs veterinary services vitally for purposes which include, importantly, the treatment of sick animals and training dairy operators, among others, on how to ward off diseases. Such a system of care and advice should be much extended to bring them at the doorsteps of the small dairy operators. It is also necessary to breed cows, goats and other farm animals having stronger and healthier characteristics in government-operated farms to sell them to private dairy operators.
But bird flu came as a severely stunting phenomenon in the otherwise favourable development of the poultry sub-sector in particular. Analysis has shown that the national GDP has been declining considerably, particularly since the last fiscal, from this factor. The GDP would be higher if the flu-related losses could be prevented or minimised. Therefore, it is extremely important for the government to be proactive to take all measures to head-off another major reverse in the poultry sub-sector. The poultry farmers themselves bear primary responsibility for the safety of their farms. But the government's responsibility must not be limited to culling the poultry birds once the disease breaks out or to pay only a partial compensation for the culled birds. The government policies must be in tandem with the steps taken by the poultry farmers to help build an environment of greater safety against the disease. Surveillance of the farms to ensure that their operators unfailingly do practise safety measures would be a good input from the government. Training the farmers in such practices and supplying them with safety gears, would be another major input. Of course, the safety gears will have to be purchased by the farmers. But distributing them in a manner that every farm gets them and that workers in each farm get trained and motivated in their use, ought to be the responsibility of the relevant ministry.
As for the wider livestock sector, the government certainly needs to play a stronger role than it so far has, to encourage positive developments. Initiatives are noted more at grass-roots level to set up small dairies. But these enterprises in many cases suffer from lack of seed fund, working capital, and veterinary services. In each of these areas, the government can be a source of inspiration and strength for these small dairies. The state-operated banks can run programmes exclusively to finance the needs of such small dairies supplying them with basic capital as well as working capital. The government runs veterinary services vitally for purposes which include, importantly, the treatment of sick animals and training dairy operators, among others, on how to ward off diseases. Such a system of care and advice should be much extended to bring them at the doorsteps of the small dairy operators. It is also necessary to breed cows, goats and other farm animals having stronger and healthier characteristics in government-operated farms to sell them to private dairy operators.