Home   Sitemap   Feedback  Contact   Login

Community Based Livestock Services Experiments in Kosgi

Livestock mortality is a major issue confronting the livelihoods of poor. Credible and accessible preventive health care & primary care will secure livestock investments in the poverty sector

Present efforts

So far the attempt is mainly to train animal health workers (AHW) in providing AI services and primary health care, and link them to the veterinary hospitals. The services of these health workers operate on the basis of (market) demand  Appropriate remuneration to the AH workers/ their sustenance is a main area of concern. The AHWs are not anchored in any institutions except veterinary hospitals

Institutionalisation is the Key

• Mandal Mahila Samakhyas are emerging as sustainable institutions of poor - where there is an institutional identify from the Family - Group - Village  to Mandal level

• At all these levels there are support systems available managed by the institutions themselves - Book Keeper -Village Network Assistant - Community Coordinators

• Can we build the livestock support service systems into these institutions - is the question being pursued.

• The logic is that animal health worker centred service systems i.e. ‘AHW as the service provider’ essentially operate on the basis of effective demand and may not be the right vehicles for universal coverage of livestock services, especially poor.

• If the MMS and VO take the role of institutional livestock service providers - the whole institution- from Group to MMS will back up the AHWs who will then provide services on behalf of the VOs. Institutional back up/ anchor are the key words here.

• In the above, the client base will be clearly established, which is half the battle!

Kosgi Initiative

• The idea is to first establish an institutional relation between the livestock farmer and the VO- the farmers are those who are members of SHGs and those who are not.

• Once this institutional linkage is firmed up - livestock services can flow in the channel to start with preventive health care - knowledge on livestock management  - curative health services - fodder development - breeding services and finally marketing; all these not necessarily in this sequence.

• In this effort there should be some revenue generation at VO and MMS level through some value added services

Establishing Institutional Linkage:

The key is establishing institutional linkage between the livestock farmer and the VO. For this vaccination and deworming are chosen as vehicles.The MMS-VO announced a package - for complete vaccination and deworming -  it is arrived at as follows:

• The AHWs trained earlier in the SAPAP program are contacted.

• A preliminary quick diagnostic study was made with the help of the SRDP team of ISNRM.

• The results are presented in an orientation program where the AHWs, MMS and representatives of VOs are present. The scope of intervention is discussed.

• Later in a meeting with the AHWs, MMS and a veterinary doctor - the following package is worked out:

• The annual schedule of vaccination and deworming are drawn on a calendar and the total cost is worked out (medicine costs + service cost including material).

• At VO level a package is opened to the farmer- that if they pay Rs.xx per animal (as per the rate chart) the VO will take care of the vaccination at the prescribed schedule.

• This announcement was made in a communication campaign where all the livestock diseases are presented to the community and those that can be controlled through vaccination.

• Farmers are asked to pay the annual amount at once upfront to the VO

• So far about 5000 animals are registered.

Once the client base is established - prior to every vaccination schedule the VO will send the demand to MMS along with the money. MMS will bulk purchase the vaccines (later the medicines also) based on the total indent from all the villages in the Mandal.  There is substantial margin between the MRP and the bulk purchases (about 40 to 50%) - MMS will retain some amount and VO will retain some percentage as service charges.The VO will pay the services charges as agreed upon to the AHWs as per their service (this is a part of the package paid by the farmer). Over time a livestock corpus can be generated at VO and MMS levels through the margin money, and from any surpluses generated from supply of vaccines from the department (??). 

Training the AHWs:

• Some of the AHWs trained under SAPAP are still practicing (4 or 5 out of 17 ??)

• A two day orientation with a veterinary doctor and the local VAS to all the AHWs on vaccination

• Later followed by a field visit for hands on experience 

• This is followed by the initial vaccination in three villages - others are in line.

• Initially the vaccines with the AH department are being used.

Next Steps

AHWs trainings - refresher courses for those who are already trained.

For the new batch - a training module of 25 days (3 to 4 days each) over a period of 3 to 4 months. This includes review of their case experiences, hands on learning and also includes ethno-veterinary practices in primary care. This module is already available with WASSAN.

Monthly review of AHWs with the trainer for about 8 months - this is to review their experiences, give new insights till the time they are comfortable with the subject and entrenched within the VOs.

There will be some redundancy in terms of number of AHWs. It is envisaged that the livestock services alone may not make a complete living for the AHWs - it would be at the most some supplementary income. Availability of a pool of workers within the mandal at the disposal of VO/ MMS is envisaged. This pool can be shared within the mandal among the VOs as per the need. It is assumed that there may be some drop-outs and the system will stabilise at some natural scale in due course of time.

The vaccinations are being streamlined, the curative health services will be operational once the trainings are grounded. Institutional mechanisms for health and breeding services need to be worked out.

Scaling Up

Following the Kosgi initiative, the same has started in Daultabad mandal.

• It may be taken forward with some gap in three other MMS who have taken WASSAN membership.

• The possibilities of extending this to APRLP watersheds are on cards.

• Together, within 6 months considerable scale can be achieved. Some institutional mechanism of bulking among all the Samakhyas (Zilla Samakhya as a platform) will create enormous business opportunities for the Samakhyas.

Back to top
 

© WASSAN, www.wassan.org