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Photo credit: Roxanna Samii Farmers threshing

In drought-prone Eritrea, livestock is a farmer’s most valuable asset. Animal husbandry is not only one of the main sources of livelihood for farmers, but it is also a form of insurance that enables poor rural people to cope with drought and other disasters. IFAD-funded projects invest in rebuilding livestock and the agriculture sector, and help Eritrean farmers meet the challenges of climate change and its effects on their lives and their livelihoods. 

Agriculture, according to recent World Bank statistics, accounts for 18 per cent of Eritrea’s gross domestic product (GDP). Within the sector, livestock has a crucial role in generating food and income. Livestock also produces biogas, an affordable source of energy for both lighting and cooking. Animals provide draught power, they are used in transportation and threshing, and they are an invaluable source of organic fertilizer. Rural households, particularly those without access to rural roads, depend extensively on livestock to carry people,  water, firewood and goods of all kinds.  

Photo credit: Roxanna Samii Livestock grazing

The country’s livestock sector was severely damaged during the 1998-2000 Eritrea-Ethiopia border conflict, and now climate change is exerting further pressure on the sector.

According to the Global Environment Facility (GEF), crop cultivation and animal husbandry account for 60 per cent of rural incomes in Eritrea. GEF models and estimates show that the expected effects of climate change will have an adverse impact on the country’s agriculture and livestock sector. The models suggest that Eritrea will experience a decrease in rainfall and a rise in temperatures over coming decades, which will result in increased dry spells and decreased soil moisture.

Photo credits: Roxanna Samii Livestock used for transport

To overcome these challenges and help poor rural people overcome poverty, IFAD has joined forces with the Government of Eritrea, the Ministry of Agriculture and other donors to rebuild the country’s agriculture and livestock sector. IFAD invests in projects such as the Gash Barka Livestock and Agricultural Development Project and the Post-crisis Rural Recovery and Development Programme (PRRDP), which works with the government and rural communities to transform the livestock sector and help the rural population develop other agriculture-related activities.
 
Making dairy production a profitable enterprise for Eritrean farmers
Since 2001 a milk collection centre in southern Eritrea that was built with assistance from an IFAD-funded project has made dairy production profitable for poor farmers. More than 400 farmers have joined the cooperative that manages the centre, a secure source of income for members and a source of good nutrition for the community.
 

The Mendefera milk collection centre is located in the Debub zoba, or region. The region has an area of 8,000 km2 and lies along Eritrea’s border with Ethiopia. Debub shares its western border with the Gash-Barka region. The region’s rural population depends on farming and herding for a livelihood.

Photo credit: Roxanna Samii Solomon Beraki, small-scale cooperative farmers

The milk collection centre was built in 2000 and became operational in 2001 under the IFAD-funded Gash Barka Livestock and Agricultural Development Project. Now it is fully managed by a cooperative of 435 dairy farmers. Almost 90 per cent of the cooperative’s members are small-scale farmers who own 1 to 5 dairy cows. But members also include 4 large-scale farmers who possess approximately 70 dairy cows, and 40 medium-scale farmers who have 10 to 17 dairy cows.

Solomon Beraki is a small-scale farmer and a member of the cooperative. Each day, early in the morning, he sets out from his farm to take his milk to the collection centre. "I travel approximately 4 km, carrying the milk in yellow plastic containers tied to my bicycle," he says.

At the centre, Goitun Gebregergis Mounjar, a technician, tests the milk. "When the farmer brings in the milk, it is tested to make sure it meets the required standards and specifications," explains Mounjar.

"After the tests the milk is poured into a special container for blending. The blended milk is tested in the quality control laboratory, where it is checked and certified and where impurities, fat and protein content are recorded," he adds. “Once it has been tested, the milk goes to the chilling tank, which contains 3,000 litres, and is kept at 4° C." 

Farmer Beraki continues, "After the milk has passed the rigorous tests, I register the amount in the ledger and wash the containers so they are ready for tomorrow's delivery. Before the project, we used to produce a maximum of 2 litres of milk, and we sold it in the village or in the immediate surroundings. Today, on average, the small-scale farmers produce 10 litres of milk per day, which we sell at 12 nakfa [official exchange rate: 1 US$=15.00 nafka] per litre. As a result, I am able to send my four children to school, I can pay for hospital and medical fees when necessary and, most importantly, my family is well fed. The cooperative staff have informed us about the nutritional value of milk and have also taught us to boil the milk before drinking it," says Beraki.

Photo credit: Roxanna Samii A technician testing the milk

"On a daily basis, the centre receives 1,200 litres of milk that is sold locally to consumers for 14 Nakfa per litre," says Mounjar. "The daily excess is sent the following day to Asmara, where it is pasteurized and sold to supermarkets. On a monthly basis, we send 20,000 litres of excess milk to Asmara," he says.

One of the challenges facing the Eritrean farmers is the shortage of forage such as alfalfa. Compared to other hay crops, alfalfa is a high-yielding forage plant and has high feed value. "We know that if the animals have good feed, they will give more milk," says Beraki. "But the problem is that feed is scarce. I have five cows, I would like to have more, but that depends on the forage. I am now leasing the forage land for 1,500 nakfa per year. If I can be assured of good feed, I would be willing to pay more to have more forage land."

The milk collection centre in Debub zoba has contributed to improving the livelihoods of the cooperative members. Over the last seven years the centre has provided the farmers and their households with a secure source of income, and it has provided their children with a safe and secure source of highly nutritional food.

"The centre is flourishing and is self-sufficient," says Gbazghi Kefle, project coordinator of the IFAD-funded Post-crisis Rural Recovery and Development Programme (PCRRDP). "It is staffed by two technicians and is fully managed by the cooperative itself. Its finances are also blossoming and it boasts 750,000 nakfa worth of savings.

"The cooperative's vision is to use part of the savings to set up a feed processing plant, get a better-equipped laboratory and, last but not least, join forces with private sector operators to set up a pasteurization plant," says Kefle.

Photo credit: Roxanna Samii

"Thanks to the government's awareness building campaign we've learned the benefits of pasteurized milk," says Beraki. "So we are keen to install a pasteurization plant that will allow us to pasteurize our milk and sell it at a higher price to the supermarkets in Asmara."

"IFAD is continuing to assist the Mendefera milk collection centre under the PCRRDP to improve the quality certification laboratory," says Abla Benhammouche, IFAD country programme manager for Eritrea.

"Together with the Government of Eritrea we are planning to replicate this experience in other sub-zobas (administrative regions) , and promote region-wide cooperatives to meet the aspirations of many farmers," explains Benhammouche.

Source: IFAD