Abstract
The aims of the study were to characterize the socio-economic features of village chicken producers, types of chicken production systems, flock management practices, family task sharing and production constraints in lowland, midland and highland of Ethiopia. Data were collected at 360 rural households of which 120 were from lowland, 160 midland and 80 highlands. A standardized questionnaire was used to collect the data using person to person interview method. The extensive chicken management system was predominant in all of the three agro-climatic zones. Most of the studied parameters were different (P<0.01) across agro-climatic zones. Based on the whole data set, 77.9% of the households practiced an extensive form of chicken management system. However, the proportion was much higher (90%) in lowlands. From the visited 360 poultry farms, 96% of them had native chicken breeds, 3% had exotic chicken breeds and the remaining 1% had crossbreds. Chicken ownership was pre dominated by rural women than men in all of the three agro-ecological zones. Regarding family task sharing in rural poultry production systems, women were responsible for 47.9 to 77.6% of farm activities. The major production constraints and/or problems were the lack of high performing chicken breeds and disease occurrence during the period in which this study was carried out. Newcastle disease was the most prevalent health problem at 61% of the visited farms and it was highly important in all of the three agro-ecological zones. Our findings will support agro-ecology based interventions for improving village chicken management systems and enhance their economic contributions to the farmers. Key words: Agro-climatic zone, flock management, production constraint, production system, task sharing, village chicken.
Highlights
Ethiopia is one of the sub-Saharan African countries where most of the national economy depends on agriculture (CSA, 2004; Deressa et al, 2008)
The present study found that Newcastle disease was the major causes of mortality among village chicken in all of the three agro-climatic zones of Ethiopia which is in agreement with previous findings in Ethiopia (Tadelle and Ogle, 2001; Halima et al, 2007; Mekonnen et al, 2010) and in other African countries (Horning et al, 2003; Hassan et al, 2004; Aboe et al, 2006; Henning et al, 2006; Otim et al, 2007; Olwande et al, 2009)
This study provided a comprehensive overview about village chicken production systems’ characterization across agro-climatic zones in Ethiopia
Summary
Ethiopia is one of the sub-Saharan African countries where most of the national economy depends on agriculture (CSA, 2004; Deressa et al, 2008). Poultry production plays a vital role for food security and contributes to the country economy (Gerima et al, 2016). Village chicken production account for more than 95% of poultry production in this country (Tadelle, 1996, 2003; Mekonnen et al, 2010), whereas the average in sub-Saharan African countries is 78% (Tadelle, 1996, 2003). Village chicken production in Ethiopia contributes with 90 and 92% of the national egg and poultry meat production, respectively (Tadelle, 1996, 2003)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
