Lao NEWs on LNTV: Animal breeding key to rural development and livelihoods.18/11/2015
Like 1 Dislike 0 Published on 23 Nov 2015
VO Animal breeding key to rural development and livelihoods
INTRO: At the end of this year, the Lao People's Democratic Republic will mark its 40th anniversary with a series of achievements in various fields set to be highlighted to reflect the progress made in national development and defence over the past four decades. Our LNTV English News bulletine is airing a series of special reports on the achievements of the Lao PDR in the lead up to the 40th anniversary celebrations. Today we have Animal breeding key to rural development and livelihoods
STORY: Over the past 40 years the Party and government has cooperated with the private sector and international organisations in developing animal breeding for food security despite the country having to struggle to reconstruct the nation after the damages sustained during the war.
The numbers of livestock have increased every year and the country is currently able to produce meat and fish sufficient for people's consumption while some is also destined for export.
As the Party and government took high responsibility to promote livestock breeding and created a detailed plan for development, the numbers of livestock over the last few years increased by an average of 2.3 percent, according to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry.
Animal raising is important in the upland farming system not only as a source of food but also as income, a form of saving, as transport, for rituals, and to get rid of waste products and fallow vegetation.
Economically, the most important animals are pigs, poultry, cattle, goats and buffalo. Animal breeding and fishery aspects tended to grow steadily with several regions moving to breed animals on farms while some also expanded to industrial scale.
Most of the livestock expansion has been in northern provinces such as Xieng Khuang and Luang Prabang, where after breeding programs are witnessed by friends and neighbours from nearby villages they also wish to take on similar ventures.
Nationwide last year, the numbers of cattle increased by three percent, goats by two percent, pigs by six percent and poultry by five percent.
In 2014, the production of eggs rose by 32.5 percent and the production of fish by 5.5 percent.
The country is currently able to produce meat and fish to supply 361,000 tonnes or around 5.6 kg per capita, which is sufficient to meet people's demand. There are plans for supply to reach 380,000 tonnes or 53kg per capita next year.
Most livestock for export is focused on cattle and buffaloes, while fish production is focused on domestic supply.
Last year, the county exported 103,756 cattle and 7,500 buffaloes and this year there are plans to officially export 120,000 cattle and 29,500 buffaloes, especially targeting export markets along the borders.
Most of the livestock is exported to Thailand, Vietnam and China.
Nationwide Laos now has 195 cattle farms, some 668 pig farms, 405 poultry farms and around 5,800 nets of farmed fish.
Xieng Khuang was the main province for breeding cattle and buffaloes to supply the domestic market as it has a large amount of fields and a suitable climate.
Each year the province has exported more than 10,000 cattle and buffaloes to Vietnam.
The government will increase its programme of animal health inspections, improving the animal health service at both the central and local levels, upgrade the quality of animal feed products, supply sufficient animal stocks and reform the land to better facilitate livestock rearing to increase production quantity and quality.
The government has also given the green light for domestic and foreign entrepreneurs to invest in the sector and encouraged more farmers to participate in agricultural improvement programmes.
With cooperation and assistance from international organisations including the European Union, Switzerland and United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation the government has promoted thousands of families in Laos to increase their understanding about the techniques of animal breeding and planting grasses for animal feed.
The promotion helped their families to improve their livelihoods and enabled their children to attain a higher level of education.
However, fish breeding in Laos is still expanding slowly as there are limited fisheries experts and researchers or education institutes in this sector.
To expand the sector, the government especially the Department of Livestock and Fisheries, has set up fisheries groups at the provincial, districts and village levels, and provides advice on breeding and conservation.
The country is currently able to breed some types of fishes included foreign fish but it could not supply the demand of domestic breeders as yet and large numbers of fingerings are still being imported.
However the county comprises rich natural resources and as the management and conservation of native fish stocks improves there is plenty of room for fish breeding to be expanded in the years ahead.