Project Progress Report: The development and implementation of new appropriate technologies for improving goat production and increasing small-holder income in the central region of Vietnam - MS3 " doc

Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development Project Progress Report 009/VIE05: The development and implementation of new appropriate technologies for improving goat production and incr

Ministry of Agriculture & Rural Development

Project Progress Report

009/VIE05: The development and implementation

of new appropriate technologies for improving goat production and increasing small-holder income in the central region of Vietnam

MS3: SECOND SIX-MONTHLY REPORT

(July to December 2006)

8th February 2007

1 Institute Information

Project Name The development and implementation

of new appropriate technologies for improving goat production and increasing small-holder income in the central region of Vietnam (009/VIE05)

Working Title Vietnam-Australia Goat Improvement Project (2006-2009)

Vietnamese Institution Goat and Rabbit Research Centre

(GRRC), NIAH, MARD

Vietnamese Project Team Leader Assoc Prof Dr Dinh Van Binh

Australian Organisation The University of Queensland

Australian Personnel Dr Barry W Norton

Completion date (original) March 31 2009

Completion date (revised) March 31 2009

Reporting period July 1 – December 31 2006

Contact Officer(s)

In Australia: Team Leader

Name: Barry W Norton Telephone: 61733651102

61732890260 (AH)

Position: Honorary Research Consultant Fax: 61732890103

Organisation: The University of Queensland Email: b.norton@uq.edu.au

In Australia: Administrative contact

Name: Mr Kerry Johnston Telephone: 61733657493

Position: Research Administration Officer Fax: 61733654455

Organisation: University of Queensland Email: k.johnston@research.uq.edu.au

In Vietnam

Name: Dr Dinh Van Binh Telephone: 8434838341

Position: Director, Fax: 8434838889

Organisation: Goat and Rabbit Research Centre Email: Binbavi@netnam.vn

2 Project Abstract

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The development of goat production systems in Vietnam has been strongly promoted by the Vietnamese government through the establishment and support for the Goat and Rabbit Research Centre at Son Tay in the north of Vietnam The initiatives developed at this centre through both national and international R&D programs have been successfully implemented on local farms in the north, and both the national and provincial governments wish now to promote similar schemes in central and southern Vietnam While many of the technologies exist, the expertise and funding to apply these to small holder farmers are limited The proposed 3 year project aims to identify the limitations to improving goat productivity and profitability on selected farms in Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Lam Dong provinces; and to train local Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) staff , participating and other local farmers in goat production systems and in the application of new and appropriate technologies (improved housing, disease control, improved feed supply and quality, introduction of Bachthao bucks of proven genetic merit) In this way the existing limitations to improving productivity will

be overcome, thereby improving the income and well-being of farming communities in these areas

The following report presents information collected on the Goat Production Baseline (Output 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3) and the progress made in the 2nd Six-Monthly Report (July – December 2006)(Output 2.4), both reports being submitted to claim the August 2006 and January 2007 payments due at this time During this period, all farms were inspected for progress and action plans developed to sustain production, an Advisory Board, Farmer Forum and Field day meeting were held in Lam Dong province, and plans were made for the activities of 2007 Acquittal statements for UQ and GRRC expenditures are included

3 Executive Summary

The following report presents information on the initiation of activities for the CARD

project The improvement and implementation of new appropriate technologies for

improving goat production and increasing small-holder income in the central region of Vietnam (009/05VIE) in Vietnam during the period July to December 2006 The project was initiated by the visit of Dr Norton to Vietnam (April 19 – May 4 2006) when it was decided that the working title of the project will be “Vietnam-Australia Goat

Improvement Project (2006-2009)”, and this title will be used in all official future

reports The Introduction and background, project objectives, approach methodologies and means of implementation of methodologies remain the same, and the following

report present the progress made to December 2006 During this period, the planned new technologies were introduced onto 27 farms in the Binh Thuan, Ninh Thuan and Lam

Dong provinces, these concrete aprons under each goat house to collect manure,

vaccination of all goats against enterotoxemia, and goat pox, in some cases, treatment

with ivermectins to control internal parasites and the planting of small areas (0.20 ha) to pasture grasses, legumes and fodder trees A review of each farm after these introductions indicated variable success on some, and excellent results on others A plan of action was developed for each farm to correct any deficiencies, and the success of these plans will be

reviewed again when visiting Vietnam next in March 2007 During this time, an

Advisory Board meeting was held in Dalat, Lam Dong, and provided a means for project staff to get feed-back from DARD officers on any problems that arose A Farmers Forum was also held in Dalat, offering an opportunity for project staff to explain the purpose of the project, and to invite any questions on the operations of the project Similar meetings will be held in 2007 and 2008 A further 30 farms in these areas were surveyed so that progress on the project farms can be judged against those on which no technologies have been applied

4 Introduction & Background

Goat production in Vietnam has rapidly expanded in the north with the introduction of new knowledge for disease control, feeding management and the introduction and

selection of both local (Co, Bachthao) and exotic (Boer, Saanen, Jumnapari etc) breeds of goats to village systems These initiatives have been lead by the Goat and Rabbit

Research Centre (GRRC) at Bavi, from which an expanding milking and meat goat industry is being developed While goat meat is not a common commodity in the markets

in Vietnam, economic returns for goat farming are high and are attracting many farmers

to add goats to their farming enterprises Goats are particularly important for poor

farmers, providing good returns for little investment The project proposal which has been developed and successfully funded by AusAID under the CARD program was specifically aimed at providing poor farmers in the central provinces of Vietnam (Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan, Lam Dong) with some of the new technologies which have been

developed by GRRC in the north This aim is reflected in the project title “The

improvement and implementation of new appropriate technologies for improving goat production and increasing small-holder income in the central region of Vietnam” This

is a program which includes elements of farm survey, strategic planning for improving health and nutrition of goats, as well as training of key farmers and Department of

Agriculture and Rural Development (DARD) staff in these new technologies Extension

of these activities to the wider community will be achieved by conducting field

days/workshops for local farmers using demonstration farms The following report describes the outcomes of the first official visit to Vietnam during which time strategies for project implementation and management were developed, as well as recording the progress made to date in achieving project objectives and plans for activities the coming six-monthly period

Objectives and Outputs of Project: The Project has proposed a list of 7 objectives

which it plans to achieve over the 3 year period 2006 to 2009 These are as follows:

1 Identification and characterisation of target farms

2 Training and Information Dissemination

3 Provision of improved housing and health care for goats

4 Improve the availability and quality of feeds and forages for goats

5 Provide local and introduced Bach Thao bucks of proven genetic merit for breeding

6 Economic evaluation of impact of new technologies on goat productivity

7 Support for pilot meat processing facilities at the Ninh Hai Goat Research Centre, Ninh Thuan

Within each objective there are a series of activities associated with expected outputs, and these plans are shown in Table 10, (Project Logframe) which is the same table shown as Table 3.1 in the Final Project Design document approved by CARD for

implementation With the exception of Objective 7, parts or all of the above objectives have been achieved in this first 6 month period

Approach and Methodology

The information provided below is the same as that presented in the Project document and agreed to as appropriate to the objectives outlines above

General approach The project will be located in the Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Lam

Dong provinces which are located in the south central coast of Vietnam, 334 km from Ho Chi Minh city and some 1400 km from Hanoi The local people are mainly Kinh, Cham, Ede and are amongst the poorest in Vietnam (US$45-65 income per annum) The traditional farming systems vary from rice cropping in the river deltas in Ninh Thuan to upland farming systems based on cassava, root crops, fruit and forest trees and livestock Goat numbers in 2004 in Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Lam Dong were estimated to be 93,930; 35,275 and 9309 respectively Goats are largely managed by women and children Income from livestock forms 22 to 25% of total income from agricultural production in this region Three broad categories of farming systems (lowland high rainfall, upland low rainfall and highland high rainfall) have been selected The plan is to develop 27 farms (15 in Ninh Thuan, 9 in Binh Thuan, 3 in Lam Dong) by firstly surveying each enterprise and then providing new technologies (housing, health care, nutrition, breeding bucks) as indicated These participating farmers will be also trained in

a short course at GRRC and then on farm by DARD officers in the implementation of these management skills In each province, 2 farms will be selected as demonstration farms which will be used to train other farmers in these techniques and as model of progressive goat production systems The selected farmers will have experience of goat production, having between 50 and 100 goats and generally sufficient land to grow the required forages This holistic approach to the introduction of new technologies is preferred to a more fragmented approach where only specific interventions (eg disease control only) are made This approach to development has been successfully applied in north Vietnam and is expected to provide a rapid improvement in productivity in similar systems in central Vietnam An important new initiative for this project is the support for

a pilot meat processing plant at the new goat research centre to be built at Ninh Hai in Ninh Thuan

Staff and institutional gaps will be addressed by a comprehensive training program, firstly, by training DARD staff at GRRC and linking them with specialist GRRC

counterparts, and secondly by using the trained DARD staff to train district officers, participating farmers and the local communities through the dissemination of information through written materials, workshops and demonstrations This approach will build capacity in Australian collaborators, GRRC staff and farmers to work as inter-disciplinary and inter-institutional teams, and foster a more holistic approach to improving agricultural and animal production in these poor villages in central Vietnam The Australian partner contribution will be largely through the active participation of Dr Norton in all matters relating to the development and introduction of the new technologies, and will be complemented by the visit of 5 senior Vietnamese staff to Australia, where they will visit goat production farms and processing facilities for meat and milk, as well as inspecting a range of fodder conservation systems

The training programs will have as a central aim the preparation of materials for distribution to participating and other local farmers on the technologies available and relevant to each farming system Extension materials now available from GRRC for goat farmers in the north will be modified to meet the particular needs of farmers in central Vietnam In the second year, demonstration farms will be used to train farmers not currently involved in the project, with a view to spreading information about the new technologies as widely as possible during the time of the project

The project will depend on the continuous availability of a reliable vehicle and driver to gain access to the villages, and particularly for some of the remote districts of Lam Dong and Binh Thuan Access to the participating farms could be compromised by poor roads and weather, and the timing of all activities will be planned with these limitations in mind It is planned to introduce Bachthao bucks of proven genetic merit to replace those currently used With the continuous mating systems usually found, it is possible that in the first year, few non-pregnant goats would be initially available for insemination by introduced bucks There is also a possibility that a disease epidemic such as foot and mouth disease could compromise the outcome of this project All the above risks (and any others that arise) will be assessed during the survey, and implementation strategies modified to meet any limitations While it is recognised that natural disasters such as disease, drought, flood, fire and typhoon could compromise the outcomes of this project, there is little planning that can be done to avoid such calamities The support and active participation of farmers in the management of introduced goats and experimental programs will be essential, and all farmers will be advised and supported by both local (village and district) and provincial DARD officers in the implementation of all planned strategies

Implementation Methodologies A key component of this project is the identification of

the resources available on the selected farms, and it is from this information that management/intervention strategies will be developed by project staff to overcome the perceived limitations to improved productivity The first activity of the project will therefore be to conduct a survey of each farm to provide the above information, and this information will then form the baseline against which change will be measured The expert GRRC and Australian team will then devise strategies for each farm depending on their circumstances In some cases, a common strategy can be applied to all farms (replace bucks, improve goat house, provide vaccines, drugs and recommendations for use), in other cases, the strategy will be particular to each farm (improved feed and forage

supply) It is recognised that local knowledge of feed resources and remedies must be evaluated and incorporated wherever possible

5 Progress to Date

The progress made in the period July to December 2006 will now be reported under Implementation Highlights (5.1) against the Project Logframe providing the means of verification listed as proof of delivery of the services planned The first Output

Milestone 3 relevant to this report is shown in Table of Milestones, Annex 1 of Schedule

2, Scope of Services for CARD Project 009/05 VIE was listed as Logframe Reference 3 (Outputs 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3) and titled “Goat Production Baseline” listing the following deliverable outcomes as the verification for payment: “Physical, financial and social status of 27 target farms, physical and financial status of 30 farms outside project and survey of existing structure and farming practices of goat farmers in target provinces”

Milestone 4 is the second output relevant to this report (Project Logframe Output 2.4,

Activity 2.4.3) described as “Collection and collation of six-monthly accounts, outputs from project activities” for the Second 6-monthly report including progress in this period for activities listed under Objectives 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 Delivery and acceptance of this completed report which also includes the report of Goat Production Baseline is expected

to return a payment of A$66,442 (August 2006 ($33,221) and January 2007 ($33,221)) to the University of Queensland for this period

Evidence of completion of these activities will be presented in the body of this report and supported by attachments as appendices and larger files presented on a CD

5.1 Implementation Highlights

Objective 1 Identification and characterisation of target farms

Output 1.1 (Collection of general information on existing systems of goat production Activities 1.1.1 and 1.1.2) and Output 1.2 (Collection of specific information from selected farms in year 1, Activities 1.2.1 and 1.2.2) were reported as completed in the previous report, and Activity 1.2.3 (Collation and summary of survey data) has now also been completed in this current period An additional activity not listed in the Objectives but included in Milestone 4 was to collect information from 30 additional farms to the 27 elected for study This extra survey activity has taken more time than expected, and was only completed in late December 2006 The remaining activities in Objective 1 (Output 1.3) will be undertaken in Year 3 and reported at the appropriate time

Output 1.2, Activity 1.2.3 Collation and Summary of Survey Data

The collection of information on the goat-farming systems is an on-going study, and a comprehensive understanding of this system will only be available at the end

of this project when comparisons can be made of the gains in productivity that were achieved The initial baseline survey has provided a snap-shot view of 27 farms in 7 districts in 3 southern Provinces of Vietnam, and data is still being collected on the incidence of disease, reproductive performance, live-weights and economics of goat raising in these areas The baseline survey was followed by the application of the technologies proposed, viz, ie improved housing, preventative disease control and

provision of better nutrition through the provision of on-farm forages CD Appendix 1

presents tables and brief summaries of data collected for 27 “project” and 30 “other” farms in the areas under study This report is presented as evidence of completion of Milestone 3 as listed above This data will be later condensed and summarised in the coming year, and integrated with additional quantitative information on “farm productivity”, leading finally to a comprehensive document at the end of the project which will include the final outcome of the technological innovations on the productivity and well-being of Vietnamese goat farmers in these areas

Objective 2 Training and Information Dissemination

Output 2.1 (Train provincial DARD officers at GRRC) Activities 2.1.1 and 2.1.2 were reported as completed in the First Six-monthly report Output 2.2 (Preparation of demonstration and instructional materials for use with participating farmers) will be completed in the next 6 month period during which time a training workshop for other local non-participant farmers (Output 2.7) will be undertaken Output 2.3 (Train participating farmers in the application of new technologies) Activities 2.3.1 and 2.3.2 have been completed in this period although this is an on-going process of visit and

review CD Appendix 2 shows reviews and recommendations for action on each farm

following the first inspection and discussion with farmers and project staff in November

2006 Further instruction was provided to some farmers who attended a Farmers Forum

in Da Lat, Lam Dong (see later), and had an opportunity to discuss their problems further with DARD and project staff

Output 2.4 Presentation of six-monthly reports and review of project progress

Activities 2.41 (Annual meeting of collaborators to review progress and plans for the

following year, 2.4.2 and 2.4.3 were completed in this period Appendix 1a and 1b shows

the membership and agenda in English and Vietnamese respectively for the First Advisory Board meeting of the Vietnam-Australia Goat Improvement Project (2006-2009) which was held in Dalat Lam Dong Province on 25th November 2006 This meeting was held in the morning, and was restricted to senior DARD staff, GRRC and

UQ project counterparts In the afternoon, a Farmers Forum was held in which all participants in the Project were invited to comment on the aims and outcomes of the

Project so far CD Appendix 3 reports the details of these meetings which were both well

received by all involved and provided valuable feedback on the progress of the Project to date On the following day, a field day for all participants was held on Mr Lungs farm where all of the new technologies were well demonstrated Activity 2.4.3 is designated as the presentation of this current report

Objective 3 Provision of improved housing and health care for goats

Output 3.1 Improved housing for goats on each selected farm

Activities 3.1.1 and 3.1.2 were largely completed in the previous period, and a review of

these activities is provided in CD Appendix 2 above Some further minor modifications

have been recommended to improve the quality of housing provided

Output 3.2 Control of all disease to improve health of goats on all farms

Activities 3.2.1 and 3.2.2 were planned to be completed in this period, but could be only partially implemented for a number of reasons In Binh Thuan province, despite assurances that our

program could be carried out, no vaccinations were made against any of the diseases suggested

to be important, and reasons are being sought as to why this program was not conducted In other areas, vaccination against Enterotoxemia and goat pox was undertaken, but it was not thought relevant to vaccinate against FMD The goat pox vaccine was produced in Vietnam, and it is not clear yet how effective the vaccine is Dr Norton has requested experimental evidence on the efficacy of this vaccine, but to date no information is available While there is no doubt that goat pox is a serious disease of goats in Vietnam, there is little information available in its epidemiology or treatment Further information needs to be collected to clarify this matter It was also considered important to use ivermectins to treat all goats in the study to control external and internal parasites However, this treatment was left to the judgement of the farmers who were asked to pay for the treatment, and as a consequence, few farmers treated all animals with ivermectins, and intestinal parasites are still likely to be a major problem in these goats It is imperative that all goats be treated soon, and that the project meets the costs of all drugs recommended This aspect of the study needs more attention if we are to provide the disease free conditions essential for improving productivity in these goats

Objective 4 Improve the availability and quality of feeds and forages for goats

Output 4.1 Provision of improved forage supply to participating farms

Activities 4.1.1, 4.1.2, 4.1.3 and 4.1.4 were completed with the establishment of small plots (0.2 ha) of mixed legume/grass pastures in June/July 2006 before the wet season had begun However, as mentioned in the reports on individual farms, some plantings were done too late in the wet season, and waterlogging caused many pasture plots to fail Recommendations were made during this current period for some replanting to be done, but not until the beginning of the wet season (May), and exercising a better choice of location Dr Ross Gutteridge will be coming to Vietnam to further advise on pasture establishment in some of these difficult areas, and it is hoped that all farms will have well established pastures by the end of the next wet season (October 2007)

Objective 5 Provide local and introduced Bach Thao bucks of proven genetic merit for breeding

These activities will be developed in the coming year (2007) after suitable sources of BachThao bucks have been identified

Objective 6 Economic evaluation of impact of new technologies on goat productivity

Output 6.1 Economic data on goat productivity

Activity 6.1.1 has been completed with the collection of income and expenditure data for each farm being studied The analysis of this data will be undertaken in the coming period, and will be used as the baseline against which we will compare economic returns before and after the introduction of the new technologies

5.2 Smallholder Benefits

There have already been clear benefits to small-holder goat farmers in the central regions

of Vietnam Those that have been supplied with vaccines and medicines have found a greatly reduced mortality in their animals, resulting in better growth and a greater pool of animals to select from for sale or breeding The improvements made to the goat houses

have provided a cleaner environment for both the animals and their carers, as well as a source of manure for use on crops and pastures Many farmers were surprised at how much manure could be collected in this way We have also provided bucks to households without males to enable the herd to continue breeding The provision of pastures has been well received by farmers who recognise the need for good quality feed for their animals

in the dry season In the coming year, some farms in each district will be selected as demonstration farms on which other local farmers can be instructed in the application of the new technologies to improve the productivity of their goats

5.3 Capacity Building

The major focus of the project at this stage has been the training of DARD officers from Ninh Thuan, Binh Thuan and Lam Dong provinces in goat husbandry and management,

in the conduct of surveys and the acquisition of expertise to act as goat production specialists in their provinces The initial training of 14 DARD officers at GRRC has had a flow on effect, in that, when farms were selected for inclusion in the project, one DARD officer, one local government officer and the commune (village) head was involved in all stages of the process, from interview to implementation This has the effect of creating awareness of project activities and the new techniques being applied to goat production in each area There has also been individual training of farmers when the new technologies were being implemented, and each farmer will have an increased knowledge of the prospects and limitations to goat production on their individual farms It has been noted that there is already a significant flow-on effect in each area, where other farmers are implementing some technologies, eg collecting pasture seeds from project farms for planting on their own farms, improving the hygiene of their goat houses, and actively seeking vaccines to treat their stock, particularly vaccines for goat pox

5.4 Publicity

The survey created local awareness of the aims and activities of the project, and at the present time, farmer manuals for goat management are being prepared It is not known how this information has been reported by the local press, but in the coming 6 months, signs will erected at each farm describing the project activities, demonstrations will be organised on selected farms for inspection by other local farmers, a workshop will be run

in each area during April/May 2007 to encourage the adoption of the techniques which have been applied to the “demonstration” farms, etc Publicity will follow once we have established farms which are successfully applying our prescribed technologies When it was first suggested that the project introduce new technologies in the goat production systems of Lam Dong province, we were told that previous work had shown that this environment was not suitable for raising goats However, it is now clear that where appropriate management strategies are applied, goat production in Lam Dong province can be a successful and profitable enterprise

5.5 Project Management

Dr Mui and Dr Binh have provided strong leadership and support for the implementation

of this project in central Vietnam Technical staff from GRRC have been essential for the