By Mulengera Reporters
The National Animal Genetic Resources Centre and Data Bank (NAGRC&DB) is conducting a needs assessment among livestock farmers in Mbale District as part of efforts to establish sustainable, farmer-led breed societies in Uganda.
The assessment is being undertaken under the Uganda Climate Smart Agricultural Transformation Project (UCSATP), with a focus on understanding the priorities and challenges facing livestock farmers in breeding and genetic improvement.
During the engagement, farmers are sharing their breeding priorities, experiences and organizational needs, information expected to guide the development of farmer-led breed societies that can support long-term improvements in livestock production.
The initiative seeks to strengthen farmers’ participation in decisions around livestock breeding while improving access to quality breeding services. By organizing farmers around shared breed interests, the programme aims to create structures through which producers can contribute to genetic improvement and promote the adoption of productive and climate-resilient livestock breeds.
NAGRC&DB says understanding farmers’ needs is critical to ensuring that breeding interventions respond to local production conditions and the priorities of livestock keepers. The approach also recognizes farmers as key actors in the management and improvement of Uganda’s animal genetic resources.
The assessment forms part of broader efforts under UCSATP to promote climate-smart agricultural systems capable of improving productivity and resilience among farming communities.
For livestock farmers in Mbale, the proposed breed societies could provide a platform for collaboration, knowledge sharing and improved access to breeding services and technologies. They are also expected to contribute to more organised and sustainable approaches to livestock genetic improvement.
The engagement in Mbale is therefore intended not only to identify immediate breeding needs but also to lay the foundation for farmer-owned institutions that can support productive, climate-smart livestock systems over the long term. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
