Community-Based Livestock Improvement and Conservation:
Experiences from Open-Nucleus Breeding
Programmes in West Africa

Chia Valentine Yapi-Gnaoré,^[4] B. Dagnogo^[5] and B.A. Oya^[6]

Abstract

New priorities in livestock development were set following the 1972-1973 drought in the Sahel. These new priorities included a community-based national sheep improvement programme emphasizing smallholders. The primary goal was the improvement of the performance of the breed. Nevertheless, the focus of all activities was directed at the utilization and conservation of the local Djallonké sheep breed. The breeding strategy follows that of an open-nucleus breeding scheme with selection based on individual performance of the local breed, Djallonké. The selection scheme included three phases: an on-farm preselection phase, an on-station first selection phase and an on-station final selection phase followed by the distribution of selected rams to farmers for mating. The selection yielded two categories of rams: the first-category rams, used in base flock mating and, the second-category rams sold to other farmers. All the farms involved throughout the country were instructed to breed only the local breed of Djallonké sheep. About 14 000 Djallonké breeding ewes, raised on 170 smallholder farms, were involved in the selection programme of the local Djallonké. The breed is highly appreciated because of its ability to tolerate trypanosomiasis. The Djallonké sheep live and reproduce in the tsetse-infested zones of the tropical humid and subhumid ecological environments. Despite some difficulties, farmers are in the process of organizing sheep-breeders associations to continue the breeding and conservation of the local Djallonké sheep initiated by the Government of Côte d’Ivoire.

Introduction

The history of livestock development in Côte d’Ivoire began very recently. It started with the drought of 1972-1973 in the Sahel. Because the future of the country’s livestock supplies were at risk during that period, a very high priority was set on livestock development, particularly on short- or medium-reproductive-cycle species (MPA, 1976). A campaign to promote livestock production throughout the country was launched. An extension agency, Société pour le Développement de la Production Animale (SODEPRA), was created and located in five regional offices (Centre, Nord, Ouest, Sud-Ouest, Sud-Est). In 1977, SODEPRA’s central regional office initiated the national sheep programme, Programme National Ovin (PNO). Three major activities were assigned to the PNO. These activities were:

The creation of the national sheep centre, Centre National Ovin (CNO): The CNO had the objectives of selecting farmers and providing them with improved breeding stocks of Djallonké sheep, testing out new sheep production techniques and training sheep farmers and extension workers. A special programme was later initiated to establish, after the training, a new generation of young sheep farmers - the Programme d’Appui à l’Elevage Ovin (PAEO).

The creation of a state farm for commercial sheep production: The commercial production unit had a mandate for large-scale sheep production through the utilization of the Stylosanthes hamata cover crop in the cassava cropping system.

The provision of technical assistance to sheep producers: The tasks to be carried out were organizing sheep producers in rural areas, promoting and rationalizing private or communal sheep enterprises, encouraging villagers to establish new flocks using modern techniques and organizing the production and marketing of slaughter animals. In addition, the technical assistance service collaborated with the veterinary health service in vaccinating farmers’ flocks against major diseases (Peste des Petits Ruminants [PPR] and Pasteurellosis) once a year and oversaw the prophylactic programme.

After several years of extension work through the activities of the PNO, a selection programme on pure-breed Djallonké sheep was initiated in 1983 in the central and northeast regions of Côte d'Ivoire. It was later extended to other regions of the country. The primary objectives of the selection programme were to improve growth and live weight of pure-breed Djallonké sheep and provide smallholder sheep farmers with improved breeding animals. Although the primary goal was the improvement of performance, the focus of all activities was directed at the utilization and conservation of the local Djallonké breed of sheep.

Role of communities in conserving animal genetic resources

The selection programme (Programme National de Sélection Ovine [PNSO]) was designed as a development project with smallholder farmers being the primary target. One of the major requirements was farmers who breed only local Djallonké sheep. All the farms involved were instructed to breed only Djallonké sheep and eliminate animals showing another sheep type phenotype from their flocks. The programme was designed to include the maximum number of Djallonké sheep raised in the country. However, not all farms were included in the programme. The PAEO contributed significantly to the PNSO. A total of 209 Djallonké farms were established. Each farm received at least 150 breeding Djallonké ewes, which were automatically included in the selection programme.

The major reason for promoting the local Djallonké breed was its adaptation to the physical environment of Côte d’Ivoire. The climate of the region is of the sudano-guinean type. Annual rainfall during the study period was 1 112 mm, with the lowest monthly rainfall in December (7 mm) and the highest in August (201 mm). The average temperature was 26 °C and ranged from 19 to 35 °C. The vegetation consists of arboreal savannah. The breed is known in tropical humid and subhumid environments for its adaptation. It is widely believed to be trypanotolerant, mainly because of its ability to live and produce in the tsetse-infested zones. Sheep coming from neighbouring countries find it difficult to survive in the Djallonké environment. In addition, it is widely believed that the Djallonké has better taste and better carcass characteristics.

Community mobilization

The PNSO activities started in 1983 with farmers involved in the extension service of the PNO. Based on their experiences and skills in modern sheep production techniques, some farmers were chosen to participate in the programme. These farmers were recognized to be capable of keeping records of their flocks, correctly identifying their animals, following the prophylactic programme and giving their animals supplements during critical periods. The enrolled farms comprised smallholder flocks and the two state farms. The smallholder flocks were those of the traditional sheep farmers and those established through the PAEO programme. Further requirements for the farmers to be registered with the extension service included the holding of property rights to the land where their farm was located, easy access to a water source (river or agropastoral dam) and easy access to the farm by car. The principal objective was to help farmers, most of whom are smallholders, to move from traditional husbandry practices to new, improved management techniques.

Farmers were taught how to build night enclosures, shelters, collecting yards, sorting pens (with traditional local material) and footbaths. They also learned how to castrate unwanted rams, to identify lambs at birth and to keep records. Lambing events to be recorded included the identification of lambs at birth, the recording of dates of birth, sex of lamb, birth type, birth weights and 80-day weight. Lamb identification numbers were given as series of consecutive numbers based on the mating period and the number of ewes mated in each flock.

Lambs were born on the participating farms. Participating farmers used low- to medium-input production systems. Flock management varied from exclusive utilization of natural savannah pasture with few supplements on smallholders’ farms to the use of natural and cultivated pasture with a high level of supplements on state farms. Supplements were provided to nursing ewes and during the dry season. Supplements were combinations of various agricultural and agro-industrial by-products. Cereal by-products were often used. Salt lick and water were provided ad lib.

Vaccination against major diseases (PPR and Pasteurellosis) was provided free of charge through the veterinary health service. Endoparasite and ectoparasite controls were performed once or twice a month depending on the season. It was the responsibility of the farmers to carry out those treatments. Until 1998, veterinary products and fencing material were available at subsidized prices.

Farmers contributed to the programme by selling their selected ram lambs to be monitored until the final selection process. They offered their farms as field training laboratories for future candidates in the process of establishing their sheep farms. The number of farms and breeding ewes increased in all the regions (Tables 1a & 1b). In March 1999, 143 farms were involved in the programme, which represents 17 000 breeding Djallonké ewes (88 percent from smallholder farms and 12 percent from one state farm).

The governments of Côte d’Ivoire and France and the European Community, through the European Development Fund, provided funding for the selection programme. Since 1999, the Côte d’Ivoire Government has funded the programme on its own. In the long run, farmers will take over the management of the programme and will be responsible for organizing funding through their farmers’ organization, l’Association pour la Promotion du Djallonké de Côte d’Ivoire (APRODJALCI).

Organization and coordination of the programme

The breeding strategy follows that of an open-nucleus breeding scheme with selection based on individual performance of the rams. The structure of the PNSO is composed of one central performance evaluation station for rams (the nucleus) and farmers’ flocks of only breeding ewes (the base population). The flock of selected rams maintained at the PNSO performance-testing station is considered to be the nucleus. The station holds only selected rams. There is no ewe in the nucleus flock on station. The ewe flocks are those of the farmers.

Table 1a. Evolution of number of flocks and breeding ewes in the PNSO from 1984 to 1994 under the SODEPRA extension service

Table 1b. Evolution of number of flocks and breeding ewes in the PNSO from 1995 to 2000 under the Agence Nationale pour le Développement Rural (ANADER) extension service

The selection scheme included three phases: an on-farm preselection phase, an on-station first selection phase and an on-station final selection phase followed by the distribution of selected rams to farmers for mating. Mating was scheduled from the programme headquarters. Selected breeding rams were brought to the farms for a mating period of about 45 days. Ewes were mated every eight months to a group of sires in a ratio of 1 to 30 with the number of sires in a group varying from 1 to 13. Replacement females were produced within the flocks. However, farmers were allowed to purchase ewe lambs from other participating farmers.

When the first-born lamb reached about 80 days of age, individual lamb weights were recorded. Subsequent weights were taken at about 23-day intervals. Two or three weights of each lamb born on a farm were recorded and used to estimate 80-day weight. Male lambs were selected based on 80-day weights, linearly extrapolated using recorded weights. Lambs having a weight equal to flock average plus one standard deviation were selected. In practice lambs having a weight greater or equal to 13 kg were selected and were bought from the farmers based on their live weights. Non-selected ram lambs were castrated. More and more farmers preferred not to castrate their non-selected lambs and to raise them in a separate flock away from the ewe flocks.

Animals, selected from various farms, were transferred to and maintained at the central performance testing station managed at the programme headquarters. The rams were selected based on their weights at 180 and 365 days of age on-station. Animals were weighed three or four times over a period of 10 to 12 weeks and their 180-day weights linearly extrapolated. Those with 180-day weights less than 20 kg were culled. From 1987, rams with weights greater or equal to 23 kg were classified as first-category rams; those with weights between 20 and 23 kg were classified as second-category rams. Selected rams continued to be monitored with a second series of three or four weighings until they reached 12 to 14 months of age. The final selection was made based on their 365-day weights. The selection yielded two categories of ram: first-category rams were used in base flocks' mating and second-category rams were sold to non-PNSO farmers (Table 2). The required weight at 365 days of age to qualify as a first-category ram was 35 kg. Rams weighing between 30 and 35 kg were classified as second-category rams.

On-station animals were maintained on pasture (savannah and cultivated pastures of Panicum, Centrosema and Stylosanthes spp.). Ram lambs were raised on savannah pasture in order to allow them to get used to grazing on natural pasture, the most common management practice in smallholder flocks where they would later be used. In addition to pasture, ram lambs received 500-700 g/head of concentrate of cottonseed cake, wheat bran and molasses per day. In the dry season, rams received mixed Panicum-Centrosema hay and rice straw. They were treated for external and internal parasites, vaccinated against PPR and ovine brucellosis. A checkup for ovine brucellosis was also performed.

Benefit distribution

Farmers in the base population use the selected rams from the nucleus for mating. In return, ram lambs born on those farms are bought and brought to the nucleus for evaluation and eventually selected (or not) to be sires. The price offered for the ram lambs constitutes substantial revenue for the farmers.

The number of selected breeding sires in the nucleus available for mating fluctuates between 180 and 200 animals annually. Furthermore, 100 to 120 second-category rams are sold every year to farms not in the selection programme. Over the past 15 years, the programme has produced more than 1 000 first-category selected breeding sires for the base population and about 2 000 second-category rams sold to non-base population flocks (Table 2). The dissemination of the selected rams is so effective that the number of second-category rams produced every year is not enough to satisfy demand.

As far as we know, the PNSO programme is a unique selection programme applied to the local Djallonké breed in West Africa. Over the years, various West African countries (Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo, Sao Tome and Principe) have imported Djallonké sheep from Côte d’Ivoire either as live animals (rams and ewes) or semen.

Table 2. Number of ram lambs selected on-farm and selected breeding sires in the PNSO from 1984 to 2000

Local concepts of breeds

Farmers use various phenotypic characteristics to recognize the breed. These characteristics include the length of the tail and the ears, the shape of the horns, the form of the face, the shape of the scrotum, the presence of mane or neck ruff on the males and the height of the animals. Djallonké is the name used for the breed. It is the small, horizontal-eared and thin-tail-hair breed of sheep widely distributed throughout the humid and savannah zones of West and Central Africa. It is classified among the thin-tailed-hair sheep, within the subgroup of tropical dwarf sheep, based on fleece and tail types (Epstein, 1971). It is a compact breed with a small mature height and size (Rombaut and Van Vlaenderen, 1976). Rams are horned but females are usually polled. The presence of mane or neck ruff on the males is a typical characteristic of the breed. Coat colour varies from spotted black and white to solid black or white. Any sheep showing different characteristics is not considered a Djallonké sheep. The importance of the Djallonké sheep for the farmers lies in its trypanotolerance.

Critical lessons learned from implementing the programme

Farmers are motivated as long as funds are available and inputs are available at subsidized prices. The decline in number of farms and breeding ewes occurred with the change that took place in the organization and coordination of the programme. In 1990, the number of farms was 86 compared with 100 in the previous year, as a result of the government withdrawing subsidies on veterinary products and fencing material. Since 1998, flock sizes and numbers have been declining because farmers are required to deposit their recording sheet with the nearest extension office and pay for the use of rams for mating. The number of flocks (breeding ewes) fluctuates from year to year, as new flocks enter the base and some leave, because of the openness of the programme. Out of the 209 farms that were established through the PAEO programme, only 175 are still operating. Some are in the process of closing down although they have loans to pay off.

The farmers are not all equally motivated. Although all flocks were supervised by the same service, uptake of the extension package differed from one flock to another. Farmers did not all have the same purchasing power, the same educational background and family situation. About 50 farms closed for various reasons. The deep financial involvement of the government at the beginning of the programme has led to a belief among the farmers that they should always be assisted. Any change that requires their financial involvement is seen as a reason to withdraw.

The desire of the farmers, most of whom are smallholders, to move from traditional husbandry practices to new, improved management techniques has been the major factor that has kept the programme going. Extension officers have to be very closely involved in all aspects of the programme from the beginning and financial support should be available and non-interrupted. A veterinary health service should be available. Agro-industrial production plants are essential. They should be able to provide the by-products needed for feed and be in the proximity of most farms.

Genetic analyses of the programme indicated that genetic values of the animals have been maintained or slightly increased during the period of selection. The poor nutritional conditions of most smallholder farms and the fluctuating economic and social conditions of the farmers interfered with the ability of the Djallonké sheep to express their genetic potential.

Despite these impediments, raising Djallonké sheep as a modern and profitable enterprise has become a cultural habit in Côte d’Ivoire as indicated by the number of farms and farmers’ associations established throughout the country. They include the following: Association des Producteurs d’Ovins et Caprins du Sud (APROCASUD), Association Professionnelle des Eleveurs Mountonniers du Centre (APEMCE) and Groupement des Eleveurs Professionnels de Petits Ruminants de Boundiali (GEPPRB). Nevertheless, communication among members of the interest groups is considered a very important issue because some of the members feel left out if they are not informed about various events. Furthermore, for the activity to be viable, it should be an integral part of the whole farming system; the only activity of many of those who gave up being part of the programme was raising sheep.

References

Epstein, H. 1971. The origin of domestic animals of Africa. Vol. 2. New York, Africana. 719 pp.

MPA. 1976. L'élevage en Côte d'Ivoire. Programme de développement. Bureau des Projets. Ministère de la Production Animale, Côte d’Ivoire. 21 pp.

Rombaut, D. & Van Vlaenderen, G. 1976. Le mouton Djallonké en Côte d’Ivoire en milieu villageois: Comportement et alimentation. Rev. Elev. Méd. Vét. Pays Trop., 29(2): 157-172.