As a regional trade union organization representing small and marginal farmers and farm workers engaged in livestock production, the IUF Asia/Pacific welcomes the proposal for a Voluntary guidance tool for the sustainable enhancement of small-scale livestock productivity.
We propose that the OBJECTIVES of a dedicated voluntary guidance tool include the following:
- Defining sustainable enhancement and developing a common understanding that incorporates economic, social and environmental sustainability;
- Exploring ways to integrate small-scale livestock productivity into climate mitigation and adaptation strategies and provide support for just transitions to enhance sustainability;
- Identifying the role and needs of women and vulnerable groups, particularly indigenous people and their communities, and how small-scale livestock productivity is linked to improving their incomes, livelihoods and wellbeing;
In terms of the SCOPE of the tool, we propose that it addresses gender equality, the role of women and vulnerable groups; builds upon One Health as an integrated approach to human, animal and environmental health; and considers climate mitigation and adaptation as part of sustainability.
We support the focus of the tool on "production systems that rely mainly on the family labour of both women and men and are integral to household livelihoods and consider both pastoralists and small-scale intensive and extensive farmers." In this context it is important that we develop an understanding of sustainable enhancement that incorporates the elimination of child labour (as part of family labour); and ensures that households led by women have access to the resources, State support measures, tenure rights and services that male-led households have. This includes the rights of women as widows.
Through recognizing the role of women in the small-scale livestock subsector requires recognition of the role of women-led households, and organizations freely formed by women farmers and farm workers to represent their interests. The tool should support a rights-based approach that would enable women, indigenous peoples and vulnerable groups within the small-scale livestock subsector to participate in decision-making through collective self-representation and ensure access to the resources necessary for the sustainable enhancement of livestock productivity.
in 2022, we conducted a number of surveys of our women members engaged in small-scale livestock production in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. The focus was on animal health. One of the findings was that although the majority of women tended livestock, they were excluded from decision-making and the management of resources in their household and village. This exclusion undermined the capacity to monitor animal health effectively and limited women's ability to act appropriately to animal illness and disease.
The situation was compounded by a lack of access to government/public veterinarian services and treatment. Even where public veterinarian services were available - including essential animal vaccination - there is a tendency for informal costs or fees to be imposed. Due to these higher costs there is a widespread practice of giving human medicine to animals because it is cheaper.
While education, awareness and training are important, there is a need to revitalize and restore publicly funded animal health services and to ensure equitable access. The link between animal health, human health and the environment is critical in this regard.
This should be part of a wider policy discussion on the public infrastructure and services that States should provide to support sustainable (healthy) small-scale livestock productivity in particular and small-scale agriculture in general. This may be further linked to food security and the right to food and nutrition. The focus of the tool on family farming within the small-scale livestock subsector suggests a need to consider access to food and nutrition (and not just incomes) as part of the benefit of productivity gains.
Further consideration should be given to the role of traditional knowledge, especially indigenous knowledge. It cannot be assumed that only modern science and new scientific techniques will delivery productivity gains. Serious consideration should be given to the role of traditional knowledge and indigenous knowledge sustainably enhancing productivity, while reducing both economic and ecological costs.
Given that climate change policies will directly or indirectly redefine sustainability and productivity in the livestock sector, it is important to incorporate this into the tool.
It is possible if not likely that climate policies will inadvertently favour large-scale producers despite being among the biggest polluters. Large-scale producers have access to more financial resources (including the ability invest in carbon and methane offsetting; new technologies to reduce methane emissions; clean energy investments), government resources (subsidies; tax breaks), and more scope to diversify and appear to meet climate targets.
In contrast, small-scale producers will face tremendous pressure to meet climate targets and do not currently have access to these resources. This is especially the case for small and marginal farmers in the informal economy who lack the resources and state support adapt to new requirements. These small-scale producers are more institutionally vulnerable to being targeted with emission reductions and drastic changes to livestock feed and rearing, regardless of their actual aggregate impact on methane and nitrous oxide emissions.
At the same time, increasing small-scale livestock productivity without taking into consideration new policies and legislation on climate-friendly or "green" production would undermine its sustainability and longer-term viability.
Therefore it is important that the tool provides a pathway (or multiple pathways) for the small-scale livestock subsector to make this transition.
Related to this is the need to give greater visibility to efforts to reduce emissions and successful climate mitigation and adaptation practices in the small-scale livestock sector. We have good examples of this based on the experience of our membership in the Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA) in India.
Dr. Muhammad Hidayat Greenfield