Informations et ressources scientifiques
sur le développement des zones arides et semi-arides

Titre : Impact of goat development project on livelihood assets : the case of Northern Red Sea Region in Eritrea

Auteur : Mehanzel Senait Haile

Université de soutenance : Van Hall Larenstein University of Applied Sciences

Grade : Master’s Degree in Management of Development. Specialization in Rural Development and Food Security 2012

Résumé
This research was carried out in the Northern Red Sea Region in Eritrea. It was aimed to examine the impact of the goat development project which was introduced in the region in 2007. This study presents the impact of the project in livelihood asset of the male and female headed households. The data for this study was collected in July-2012 through pre structured questionnaire which involved direct interview of thirty household heads (fifteen male and fifteen female headed households), purposively sampled from the total of 2000 beneficiaries of the project. Moreover the manager of the project in the Ministry of Agriculture in Northern Red Sea region was also interviewed.

Sustainable livelihood framework was adopted to demonstrate the impact of the development project in the livelihood assets of the selected households. Microsoft excels was used as a tool for analysis. Dependency on a single source of income, lack of access to productive assets, shortage of labour and drought were the main sources of vulnerability in the study area. Cultivation of crops was the main source of living of the household heads, casual labours and livestock rearing were also used. Households use different coping strategies in times of food shortage such as dependency on neighbours/relatives, selling of livestock, selling farm implements and planting seeds. Female headed households use more destructive strategies as compared to male headed households, which make them more vulnerable to food shortage and poverty.

Results from this study indicated that the project had positive and negative impact on the livelihood assets of the household heads. Improvements in milk consumption, efficient utilization of unpaid family labour, better asset ownership, additional cash income and better social status are some of the positive impacts that the project induces on the livelihood assets of the household heads. On the other hand deterioration of pasture land due to overgrazing and unwise management of manure of goats were some of the negative impacts which were identified in this study. With proper management of goats, goat development project can contribute substantially in improving food security and reduction poverty of poor households. From the outcomes of the research, it was concluded that goat development project has a positive influence in the majority of the livelihood assets of the selected household heads and further promotion of this kind of project was recommended.

Présentation

Version intégrale