Browsing by Author "Mwebembezi, William"

Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Performance Evaluation of NAGRIC Community-Based Animal Breeding Program on Dairy Farming in Kikatsi Sub County Kiruhura District
    (East African Nature and Science Organization, 2025-01-20) Ahimbisa, Brian; Bahame, David; Mwebembezi, William
    Community-Based Animal Breeding Programs (CBABP) have gained considerable attention recently and are being viewed as a viable approach to increase livestock productivity in low-input and smallholder settings, particularly in Uganda’s cattle corridor in general and Kiruhura district in particular. Despite the implementation of the NAGRIC community-based animal breeding program, there remains a significant gap in the comprehensive evaluation of its performance in dairy farming systems. This study therefore was intended to evaluate the performance of NAGRIC community-based animal breeding program to determine its effectiveness in achieving the desired outcomes. The study specifically aimed at assessing the level of farmer engagement and participation in NAGRIC-CBABP, analysing the influence of NAGRIC-CBABP on cattle-breed improvement and milk production and evaluating the Sustainability of NAGRIC-CBABP in Dairy Farming communities in Kikatsi sub-county, Kiruhuura district. To achieve the objectives, a cross-sectional study design was adopted rooted in the quantitative approach. The study population comprises dairy farmers, government leaders, local leaders and other leaders in Kikatsi Sub County, Kiruhura district. The sample size included 59 respondents. A structured questionnaire with multiple-choice questions was used to collect quantitative data from farmers while semi-structured interviews were held with key informants in this case leaders. The collected data was analyzed by generating descriptive statistics. From the analysis, the study revealed that the level of farmer engagement and participation in NAGRIC-CBABP is still low where about 72.5% of the farmers are still reliant on natural breeding methods with limited participation in modern breeding methods such as artificial insemination. Community-Based Animal Breeding Program had a positive influence on cattle-breed improvement and milk production in Kikatsi Sub County since they are perceived by most farmers to be highly beneficial in terms of genetic improvement, increased availability of quality and improved breeds. However, there was concern among most farmers about the scarcity of highly productive breeds in terms of milk production and the lack of tick and disease-resistant breeds. Other concerns were about the high cost of semen, limited knowledge about artificial insemination and lack of semen that specifically breeds heifers. Despite the Government intervention most dairy communities in Kikatsi Sub County have not sustainably benefitted from NAGRIC-CBABPs since utilization of services provided under this program is still low. Addressing these challenges is therefore critical to improve farmer engagement and participation in NAGRIC-CBABPs hence contributing significantly to the sustainability of these programs. The study therefore recommended Government through the NARO and MAAIF conduct thorough research into the breeds of dairy cattle that are highly productive and resistant to ticks and diseases as well as the most effective acaricides and drugs for ticks and diseases respectively. The Government should also provide subsidies on the cost of semen used in artificial insemination and train and employ more agriculture extension officers to scale up sensitization
  • Thumbnail Image
    Item
    Structure and milk hygiene of dairy cooperative value chains in an intensive production area of Uganda—A bottleneck of intervention
    (Frontiers in Sustainable Food Systems, 2023) Yoshiharu, Sugino; Bugeza, James; Bahame, David; Byaruhanga, Joseph; Haruka, Shimazaki; Masahiko, Anzai; Taishi, Kayano; Mwebembezi, William; Akashaba, Andrew; Shimada, Taku; Yasukazu, Muramatsu; Kohei, Makita
    In Uganda, informal raw milk sales dominate for domestic dairy consumption. This study was implemented to identify the structure of the dairy value chain starting from farms that participated in the Japan International Cooperation Agency Safe Milk Promotion in Mbarara project conducted between and, to assess the hygiene conditions along the chain, and thereby identify the bottleneck of dairy hygiene intervention. A longitudinal study was conducted in dairy farms in Mbarara District to compare the practice, prevalence of subclinical mastitis, and level of milk hygiene in– hygiene intervention in and, before and after the milking. California Mastitis Test was used for diagnosis with subclinical mastitis. Bulk milk samples were collected and a checklist was used to examine hygiene practices by observation. Across sectional study was conducted in milk collecting centers using a structured questionnaire to quantify the dairy value chain, and to sample milk from cooler tanks in Microbiological examinations of bulk milk from farms and collection centers were conducted using six point blood agar scoring and M Petri film, respectively. Participatory online appraisals with farmers and dairy cooperatives union were conducted to better understand the overall dairy value chains. The cooperatives sold milk to both formal and informal chains, but the sale of raw milk to Kampala was conducted by independent private traders. Within herd prevalence of subclinical mastitis significantly decreased from . % before the intervention to . % after (p < . ).However, the farm bulk milk score did not change ( . vs. . , p = . ). A significant increase in the total bacterial count was observed in the milk from collection centers (mean: . log CFU/ml) when compared to farm bulk milk (mean: . log CFU/ml; p < . ). Only . % of the samples from the centers met the microbiological criteria for processing for human consumption. Our findings suggest that intervention targeted only at mastitis does not lead to better public health due to the low level of hygiene in transportation and milk handling in milk collection centers. Systematic interventions are needed to improve post harvest dairy hygiene in Uganda.