Resource information
This report documents the in-depth situation assessment on Pastoral Risk Management and Poverty Alleviation, in Dari County. It identifies the current risks and poverty evidences existing in the county and it compares perceptions, and recomendations of different stakeholders to improve current pastoral risks management approaches and practice.Technical recommendations:To resolve the problems linked with the risks, poverty and degradation of the pasture in Dari county, the following technical aspects could be considered in the future:combine the current "top-down extension approach" with a "bottom-up participatory extension approach"; This will require: (a) introducing participatory extension methods into current conventional extension system; (b) providing training courses on participatory training methodology, participatory pasture land use planning, - and PRA methods for pastoral extension staff; (c) conducting household surveys before introducing the new technologies, in order to include herders' considerations and proposals into the research and extension programs (d) involving herders in the whole process of planning and implementing the risk prevention four counter-measures programme, and consider and integrate their proposals and recommendations into the design and construction of the programmecontrol of black beach through planting grasses, using demonstration households to gradually influence and change the behaviour approach to RM of other herdersrodent control through the use of poisons, with the participation of herders; the co-ordinating function and role of village and production team leaders should be strengthenedfurther improve the current practice and approaches to hay making and storage, and the application of concentrate feed stuff in order to prevent major losses of animals during snow disastersorganise technical training courses at the village level for enhancing herders' knowledge and skills in livestock production and increasing their abilities to prevent against detriment and recover from risks and damageconduct trials to speed up the off-stack rate, reducing the total number of animals, so that the grazing pressure due to the high stocking rate will be reduceddesign and implement a grazing management planning system at the village level with the active participation of herders and herder's groups, and discuss with them the introduction of a rotating grazing system for rehabilitating the degraded pasturePolicy recommendations:formulate an integrated sustainable pasture development strategy, at the provincial level based on the resource endowment of different prefectures; the strategy should combine RM, PA and SPD aspects and should be used as a guideline for formulating specific community development planscontinuing the implementation of the provincial preferential policy to grassland rehabilitation and poverty alleviation activities, herder's self-help and self-reliance capabilities should be further developed in conjunction with the overall governmental project implementation processallow and encourage individual households or enterprises to participate in RM and PA projects; this could be done on the basis of contracts which clearly define tasks, obligations and benefitsstrictly implement the grassland protection laws and regulations to protect the improper use of the grassland resourcesdesign and set up a disaster predication system and mobilize assistance from outsidedesign and set up a grassland resource monitoring system with the support of the provincial department of animal husbandrypromote inter-household co-operation mechanisms in RM, PA and SPD; Encourage grassland user rights or short term renting and leasing among households during the risk recovery period under the coordination of village leadersstrengthen the co-ordination roles of production team leaders and village leaders in pastoral resource management and implementing the SPD projectsestablish contracts with international society for acquiring bilateral or multi-lateral technical support
