EIAR Experience on Potential Interventions in
Livestock Value Chains Development
Getnet Assefa
LIVES Commodity Value Chain Development Inception Workshop
Addis Ababa, 21–24 January 2013

General
• EIAR’s mission is to conduct research that will
provide market competitive agricultural
technologies that will contribute to increased
agricultural productivity and sustainable food
security, economic development, and
conservation of the integrity of natural resources
and the environment.
• This presentation highlights the general efforts
done in technology generation of livestock value
chains, demonstration and related activities by
EIAR

Livestock commodities
Ruminants
- Cattle - Dairy and Beef
- Sheep and Goats Poultry
- Camel
- Layers
- Broilers
Fishery
- Dual Purpose
- Fishery
- Aquaculture

Livestock commodities
Apiculture
- Honey Feed
- Beeswax Resources
- Roughages
- Concentrates
Sericulture
- Others
- Silk
Rangelands

National Coordination
• Partners
– Regional Agricultural Research Institutes
– Bureau of Agricultures/ Livestock Agencies
– Higher Learning Institutes
– Ministry of Agriculture
– Different local and international organizations like
ILRI, ASRECA, etc

Thematic areas
Newly started
Biotechnology Socio-economics
and food science Extension,
Feed Gender, marketing
production and Climate change
Genetic improvement management
Dairy cattle
Sheep and goats
Poultry, Silk worms
Livestock Animal health
Epidemiology, control
Draught power Research and prevention
Processing Range Nutrition &
Dairy, meat, honey, management feeding
fish, feed systems

Achievements
Dairy cattle
Improved crossbred
dairy cattle
(Frisian & Jersey)
- F1 (50%)
- High grade (>75%)
With different production
packages

Dairy
- Feeding strategies to the
different areas and feed
resource types
- Forage production
- Milk processing
- Animal health
- Cooperatives and marketing

Beef cattle
Feeding management
practice with available
feed resources in the
different agro ecologies
Characterization of
selected breeds in
Ethiopia for beef
production

Animal power
• Evaluation on the use of
male indigenous and
crossbred cattle for draft
power
• Use of crossbred cows as
dual purpose animals: as
dairy and traction
• Evaluation of different,
improved power farm
implements and harness
used in animal traction

Small Ruminants
– Improved management of
local breeds
– Cross breeding
• Dorper sheep
• Bore Goats
– Feeding packages for the
different production systems
using locally available feed
resources

Poultry
– Adaptation of commercial
breeds (Many breeds recommended
for the different systems)
• Broilers
• Layers
• Dual purpose
– Health management
recommendations
– Feeding system
recommendations with
locally available resources
– General management practice

Fishery
– Most of the water bodies
are characterized
– Recommended aquaculture
practice are available
– Fingerling production
systems available
– Recommended fishing gear
technologies
– Preservation practice

Apiculture
– Different types of beehives
are developed
– Bee disease and pest
control mechanisms are
established
– Bee forage
– Small and large scale
honey and beeswax
processing technologies

Sericulture
– Suitable silkworm
races identified
– Silk worm forages
varieties and
management production
practice established
– Cocoon production
management production
available

Feed production & management
• Forage crops suitable for different agro-
ecologies and production strategies are
identified
– 11 registered forage species/varieties
– More than 25 other recommended species
– Various agronomic, conservation and utilization
technologies
• Recommended practice in the Improvement
and utilization of crop residues and agro-
industrial by products are established
• Demonstrations are going on in the different
agro-ecologies and production systems

Socio-economics and extension
– Socio economic information in the
different target areas
– Marketing studies
– Various information to support policy
decisions

Climate change
• EIAR has a team that works on climate
It mainstream climate in most of research
activities including livestock research to
generate climate resilient technologies
suitable to our farming systems

Gender
– Training
– Technology
demonstration (poultry,
dairy)
- Women’s cooperatives
- etc

Technology multiplication
– Technologies for demonstration
• Dairy cattle (AI)
• Poultry, Sheep and goats
• Fish, Forage seeds
• Various implements, etc
– For multipliers
– Very limited progress for various
reasons

Pre-scaling up demonstration
– Very huge demand
– Successful experience
in different parts of
Ethiopia in most of the
commodities
– Dairy
– Poultry
– Fish
– Small ruminantes
– Feed technologies

Pre-scaling up demonstration
• Currently
– Dairy - Demonstration is planned through AI
– Poultry – Extremely huge demand
• Construction of multiplication facilities
• National scaling up plans for semi-intensive commercial
poultry production is designed
– Fishery and aquaculture
• High demand (Integrated systems)
• Fingerling production capacity construction almost to
be finalized
– Forage seeds - significant high amount of forage seeds
of different forage crops are under multiplication

Newly started
• Animal biotechnology
– Reproductive biotechnology
– Animal health
– Animal nutrition
• Food science

Major Challenges
• Inadequate capacity
– Physical capacity
– Human power capacity
• Very limited technology multiplication for
pre scaling up demonstration
• Socioeconomic constraints
• Technical constraints