The dry season is here again and as usual it will be most severe in northern Kenya and pastoralists will bear the brunt of its effects because it will affect their economic mainstay - livestock.
It is pathetic and unfortunate that the pastoralist are locked in an annual circle that starts with drought and death of animals followed by heavy rains during which time they restock and fatten the animals only to lose the cattle during a dry season.
One would expect that since the seasons are predictable, better planning would put in place mitigation measures to minimise losses during periods of drought. This has not been the case.
Take the current situation where the weatherman has issued an alert about the expected dry spell. Responding to the alert, the minister for Livestock Development appealed to pastoralists to avoid the scenario witnessed some two years ago when thousands of cattle starved to death. He advised pastoralists to reduce their stocks by selling now before the situation worsens.
It makes sense for the pastoralists to turn their stocks into cash now so that they may be able to restock at the start of the long rains.
However, better planning should seek to put in place measures to ensure that pastoralists have adequate fodder for their livestock even during the drought season.
It is high time that pastoralists too set aside the laborious traditional approach to livestock keeping and embraced modern methods and practices.
Source: The Standard | Online Edition
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