Development partnerships and the improvement of Dairy production in Kiboga District

Abstract

The Agricultural sector dairy plays an important role as a contributor to Gross Domestic Product with an estimated 9% of total agriculture stake. Milk is regarded as the most nearly perfect food because of its nutrient composition for both the infants and adults and because of its vitality to development, there has been a lot of involvement of various public and private development partners. The study examined how the EADD partnership interventions improved the quality and quantity of milk production among dairy farmers and the study adopted a case study research design using Qualitative and Quantitative approaches. Quantitative data was collected from 96 randomly selected dairy farmers using structured questionnaires while qualitative data was collected from Farmer leaders and Milk processors using an interview guide while information was gathered from milk traders using FGDs. Quantitative data was analysed using SPSS (Version 17) and qualitative data content analysis. Key findings indicate that most farmers have adopted improved dairying methods and techniques, have access to improved extension services and have access to a reliable market for their milk and thus registering improved productivity. However, despite the improvement in productivity, only 24% of the farmers were able to produce the desired quantity of milk required by the market. In conclusion, the EADD partnership improved the quality and quantity of milk production among dairy farmers even though the quantity of milk produced by 76% of the farmers were still insufficient for the market. I therefore recommend that future development partnerships devise strategies that will help farmers further improve the quality of animal breeds reared and move from the traditional feeding systems given the critical role animal feeds play in improving the quality and quantity of milk production. Additionally, development partnerships need to be more intentional about developing the entire milk value chain to ease access to diversified markets and better manage price slumps during peak milk production seasons.