News

AVCD program blog

Private sector embedded extension model sustains field activities during COVID-19 pandemic

Measuring weight of animal to determine appropriate dosage for ECF vaccine and dewormer in Muhoroni subcounty, Kisumu County, Kenya (photo credit: AVCD Dairy). Update from the dairy component of the AVCD program In the last three months (April- June), the dairy component of the Accelerated Value...

Policies, institutions and livelihoods

ILRI develops framework for integrating gender in livestock genetic improvement programs

Woman herding goats in Nagar Village, Tonk District, Rajasthan, India (photo credit: ILRI/Stevie Mann). Livestock genetic improvement programs help farmers to enhance their productivity through improved breeds. But resear ch shows that men and women farmers use and interact with livestock in...

ILRI News

When did the chicken first cross the road?

There are nine chickens in the world for every human, but the story of how the species emerged from the jungles of Southeast Asia some 8,000 years ago to become the world’s favoured protein source is a complicated one. ‘The success of the chicken has a lot to do with its diversity, and that...

ILRI News

Building capacity of African researchers in genomics to play key role in boosting productivity of livestock systems

The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) recently trained African researchers working in animal science, breeding and genetics. The goal was for the researchers to apply the knowledge from the training to improve the...

ILRI News

Better breeds for more milk: ​African dairy genetics gains bulls and cows exhibition

Role of African Dairy Genetics Gains platform (Artwork/ILRI: Eric Ouma, Ekta Patel) Today, thirty-five farmers and over fifty representatives from the Tanzanian government including Hon. Luhaga Mpina, Minister of Livestock and Fisheries, Tanzania, and Dr. Eligy Mussa Shirima, Director General of...

ILRI News

Africa’s animal genetic resources – the wealth within

Ankole cattle from southwestern Uganda (photo credit: ILRI/Stevie Mann). Today, more than a hundred key partners in African livestock development, including African ministers, senior policymakers and other dignitaries, have gathered in Nairobi, Kenya, to launch new and notable products that improve...

African Chicken Genetic Gains blog

Building the business case for smallholder poultry development (part 2): Imagining ‘ACGG+’

In the course of 2018, the African Chicken Genetic Gains (ACGG) project team held an important meeting in Arusha, Tanzania (May 23-24) in order to capture the ‘business case’ for smallholder poultry development at large, building upon key lessons from ACGG so far, and looking into options for a...

  • Ewen Le Borgne
African Chicken Genetic Gains blog

Building the business case for smallholder poultry development (part 1): Taking stock of ACGG ‘1’

In the course of 2018, the African Chicken Genetic Gains (ACGG) project team held an important meeting in Arusha, Tanzania (23-24 May) in order to capture the ‘business case’ for smallholder poultry development at large, building upon key lessons from ACGG so far, and looking into options for a...

  • Ewen Le Borgne
ILRI News

Tanzania launches USD596 million livestock master plan

Tanzania minister for livestock and fisheries, Luhaga Mpina (right), receives a copy of the Tanzania livestock master plan from Barry Shapiro, senior livestock development advisor at ILRI (photo credit: Eveline Massam/IITA). Tanzania’s livestock sector is set for a major boost following the...

African Chicken Genetic Gains blog

Educational tours to ILRI poultry research facility inspire young students in Ethiopia

Students from Hillside School at the ILRI poultry research facility in Addis Ababa (photo credit: ILRI/Apollo Habtamu). The International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI)-led African Chicken Genetics Gains (ACGG) project is now hosting educational tours for students at the poultry research...

  • Beamlak Tesfaye
African Chicken Genetic Gains blog

ATONU-ACGG: Bridging the gap between agriculture and nutrition in Ethiopia (video)

Since 2017 the African Chicken Genetic Gains (ACGG) project and the Agriculture to Nutrition (ATONU) projects have implemented joint interventions in Ethiopia to improve nutrition among smallholder farm households. The recent story of Zenebech Abdus already pointed to some of the benefits of the...

  • Ewen Le Borgne
African Chicken Genetic Gains blog

Mapping of poultry hotspots in Tanzania

IFPRI Tanzania poultry hotspot analysis for the African Chicken Genetic Gains project To support the strategic planning of the next phase of Africa Chicken Genetic Gains (ACGG) program, A team from the Spatial Data and Analytics Theme of the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI)...

  • Ewen Le Borgne