This study was carried out in Bale Eco-Region (BER) which is located in Southeastern Ethiopia with the objective of addressing the cause and effect of ecological damage, particularly rangeland degradation. Both purposive and stratified random sampling approaches were used to select HouseHolds (HH). Individual interview, key informants and Focus Group Discussion (FGD) were the main sources of data for this study. The livelihood activity in BER lowland area was pastoralism before 1965 and it was based on highly productive, vast and free Rangeland with unlimited movement of the pastoralists. In the low land of BER, migration has a destination, pattern and objective to meet. These destinations are sources of mineral, a breeding site, feed and water. Migration is used as strong seasonal disease, water and feed shortage escaping mechanism. However, this is currently changed to Agro-pastoral or some of them to crop production do different disturbances. The change was mainly aggravated by expansion of agricultural investment, high population growth, illegal settlement and cultivation and banning of migration to Forest. Utilization of grazing land is communal and rangeland around homestead and watering points are overgrazed and resulted in bare land and encroached by unpalatable and thorny species. The vegetation cleaning and cultivation of drought prone area under rain-fed regimes have accelerated bare land expansion and unpalatable vegetation encroachment. The overall rangeland condition has deteriorated and the livelihoods were jeopardized. The people get in trouble, then moving from degraded area to protected and moist source forest land in Bale Mountain National Park and now causing serious deforestation. تفاصيل المقالة

The survey was conducted in Urban and peri urban areas of mid and high land of Bale, Ethiopia during September 2016 to June 2017 with the objective of identifying available feed resources, its utilization methods and constraints related to feeding. The three major towns of Bale zone Ginir, Goba and Robe and the villages surrounding them that have a border with the town were included. A total of 180 households was selected using both purposive and random sampling techniques. Out of the total respondents, 66.1% indicated feed and feeding system as primary constraints. In peri-urban, the principal dry season feed resources available to livestock in the study area include crop-residue, stubble grazing, natural pasture and hay in their descending order. Milled grain, Agro-industrial byproduct and by product of local beverage “atela” are the main supplements used. In urban, feeds are mostly purchased from flour milling and oil producing houses. Despite high price and shortage of supplementary feeds, about 80% of the total respondents are supplementing concentrate to their dairy cattle. The total average protein and energy supplement provided per day for lactating cow is 0.94kg and 1.22kg, respectively which cost 0.93$ and 0.91$ in average in urban and peri urban area to produce the total average milk of 3.65 litters. The overall average daily dairy production output is 1.94$ birr and the average net profit is 0.07$ and 1.02$ per day/cow for local and hybrids, respectively. Feed quantity and quality problem was the first ranked, followed by lack of improved breed and health problem. Hence, to bring a meaningful increase in livestock productivity, livestock should be supplemented with a reasonable quantity and quality feeds. Similarly, the traditional husbandry practice, management of natural pasture and feeding value of crop residues should be improved. تفاصيل المقالة