By Mulengera Reporters
In a bid to meet the ever growing demand for meat and milk from goats, farmers have been making attempts to import breeding stock from countries such as Southern Africa, the UK and Switzerland at exorbitant prices, and using the exotics to cross with the indigenous breeds with the hope that the indigenous breeds’ productivity would improve through the crossbreds.
However, the impact of these crossbreeding programs on the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and the profitability of large-scale goat farmers has been very limited. This has been the case because the crossbreds require a stringent management regime that is beyond the affordability of the smallholder farmers.
For large-scale commercial farmers, the high management costs of the crossbreds erode and diminish potential profits. In fact, Gross Margin Analysis studies conducted by scientists at NAGRC&DB revealed that the economic benefits from crossbreeding are not significantly different from the benefits achieved when farmers choose to do straight breeding among the indigenous goat breeds.
That is why NAGRC&DB at its Kasolwe Stock Farm in Kamuli District has developed a new breed named the “Kasolwe Brown Goat Breed.” The development of this breed is undertaken by NAGRC&DB scientists alongside private goat breeders and custodians in Kamuli and Buyende districts through the dispersed nucleus breeding scheme.
Through several years of systematic selective breeding and conventional improvement methods among the indigenous goats of Uganda at the Kasolwe Animal Genetic Resource Centre, NAGRC&DB has come up with a foundation stock of more than 500 goats that are able to breed true to type based on phenotypic adaptive and production traits.
The Kasolwe goat breed is highly competitive on account of its ability to multiply very fast given its excellent twinning rates, enhanced growth rate (up to 127g/day), high weaning percentages and its resilience to common diseases such as Haemonchosis and Heart Water, which commonly affect goats in Uganda.
Its ability to thrive in marginal production environments, while remaining highly prolific, is what makes it a super breed of choice for smallholder farmers in Uganda and other parts of Sub-Saharan Africa.
This product is a result of isolation, selection and breeding of Uganda’s indigenous goats with a particular interest in specific traits and is characterized and synonymous with the following traits:
- A shiny dark brown hair coat (resilient to both endo and ecto parasites)
- A black mane running from the face to the tail along the spine
- Sturdy, stout limbs suited for movement in challenging terrain
- Large udder size (able to breastfeed and sustain twins and triplets without supplementation)
- Horns that vary from being straight (in females and young males) to curved (in adult males)
- Female goats characterized by wattles in the neck
- Height at withers is 65 – 90cm (for adult females) and 75 -110cm (for adult males)
- Average daily weight gain of up to 127g/day
- Adult females weigh up to 65kg live body weight
- Adult males weigh up to 75kg live body weight
- The weaning age is 3 months
- Weaning weight is 12 – 15 kg live body weight
NAGRC scientists have so far conducted comparative analyses between the Kasolwe goat and other breeds available in Uganda including the Savanah, Boer, Mubende, Kigezi and Kalahari. The findings revealed that the Kasolwe goat performs remarkably well in most productivity parameters, especially, twinning ability, disease resistance, weaning percentage and adaptability to diverse agro-ecological zones.
This positions the Kasolwe goat not just as another breed, but as a potential national flagship breed for transforming goat farming in Uganda and the Sub Saharan Africa at large. The breed also presents an opportunity for Uganda to develop a competitive edge in the regional and international goat markets by supplying a unique, resilient, and highly prolific goat breed.
With the recent progress in sequencing and genotyping for goats and cattle, NAGRC&DB has seized the opportunity and partnered with scientists from Makerere University and the Roslin Institute in the University of Edinburgh to discover novel gene adaptations affecting environmental tolerance, immune and defense mechanisms among the existing Kasolwe goat population.
This collaborative partnership is aimed at safeguarding these traits from disappearing as a result of introgression by exotic breeds due to irrational crossbreeding by farmers, a practice that has been promoted by various stakeholders without consideration of long-term consequences. With the national and regional gene banks being hosted by NAGRC&DB, these traits will be conserved both in-situ and ex-situ for posterity.
According to Mr. Daniel Epinyu the manager Kasolwe Stock Farm, the foundation stock now stands at more than 500 goats that are able to breed true to type based on phenotypic characteristics. The next step is for NAGRC&DB to multiply the Kasolwe goat breed to generate sufficient numbers for availing to the farming communities through the “Kasolwe Goat Breed Society”.
The Kasolwe Goat Breed Society, currently being fostered through a partnership between NAGRC&DB and Kasombereza Farm Solutions, will ensure that Ugandans across the various agro-ecological zones of the country will access this highly adaptable and prolific goat breed to amplify the government’s socioeconomic transformation agenda. By distributing this breed more widely, NAGRC&DB intends to stimulate enterprise development and strengthen food security while improving livelihoods for thousands of rural households.
“These goats are hardy, require minimal supplementation and yet grow faster than other breeds I have kept,” said Mr. Tefula, a goat farmer from Kamuli District. “The high twinning ability has rapidly increased my herd size, something I had never experienced before,” added Mrs. Kamaali, a farmer from Buyende District. Mutiibwa, another farmer, observed “Their tolerance to local parasites and diseases has significantly reduced my veterinary costs and made goat farming much more profitable.”
These testimonies are evidence of a very critical yet important step by the Government of Uganda in ensuring that indigenous livestock resources are transformed into commercial opportunities that can improve farmer livelihoods, reduce dependence on expensive imports and position Uganda as a hub for sustainable livestock development.
According to NAGRC’s Technical manager of Production, Dr. Ssengoye Gordon: “This goat is going to be a game changer in Uganda’s livestock industry because of its twinning ability, quick growth and resilience”.
Similarly, Dr. Katali Benda, the head of the goat breeding program at NAGRC, assured reporters that: “The program is steadily building a national resource of immense value to farmers and the livestock industry.’’
Dr. Benda added that, “The Kasolwe goat is just one of the many locally developed goat breeds in the pipeline, poised to support the sustainable commercialization of goat farming in Uganda.” With adequate support, Uganda will become a net exporter of goat genetic resources to the rest of the countries in Sub Saharan Africa.
Our reporters, who have been following up on the goat breeding program at NAGRC over the years, also interacted with the local community and found out that there were several attempts to steal the male goats until NAGRC hired armed security to guard the breeding stock day and night for the last several years. This alone underscores the high value and demand for the Kasolwe goat.
Community members from Busoga districts adjacent to Kasolwe expressed pride that such an innovative development has originated from their area and they anticipate that the breed will put their Kamuli district and Busoga sub region at large on the map as a hub for goat breeding in Uganda.
NAGRC&DB envisages Uganda as a net exporter of goat genetic resources once this resource has been leveraged. With stronger farmer adoption, private sector engagement and continued scientific innovation, the Kasolwe goat breed holds the promise of transforming not only household incomes but also the national livestock economy-and thereby make Uganda a regional leader in small ruminant production. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
