Impact of Community-Based Animal Health Workers on Animal Health and Extension Services: A Case Study of Smallholder Dairy Farming Areas of East and West Usambara, Tanzania

Abstract

A study was conducted in the East and West Usambara smallholder dairy farming areas to assess delivery of animal health and extension services. The study adopted participatory approach whereby information was collected by interviewing smallholder dairy farmers, leaders of farmers' networks and animal health service providers including community-based animal health workers (CAHWs), extension officers and veterinarians. Major production constraints reported by farmers were animal diseases and· feeding problems. It was found that most of animal health delivery and extension services were offered by CAHWs mainly the farmer motivators and artificial inseminators thereby making extension officers almost redundant. The CAHWs had limited knowledge on diagnosis and management of disease conditions prevalent in the area. It is recommended that training and practising of CAHWs need to be improved including consideration of legal aspects so that they could offer better animal health and extension service and disease surveillance in the country