Recommendations
From the National Workshop on Swamp Buffalo
Development,
Hanoi, 17-18th
December, 2001
The Workshop was held during December 17-18th 2001 in
Hanoi,
Vietnam and attended by
60 participants, including some delegates from Cambodia,
Laos, Thailand
and some International Organizations in Hanoi.
Considering that:
- Buffaloes have played a special role in our farming
systems and rural development. Until now the main power source in
agriculture comes from buffalo. The use of this kind of power is very
suited to small farming. Otherwise the buffaloes provide meat, hide and
manure, which generated more income to farmers and improve their lives.
Unfortunately the full value of buffalo has been underestimated.
- The advantages of the Swamp buffalo can be considered
as wide rage adaptation, better ability to utilize low quality roughages,
suited to swampy logy areas, high resistance to ticks and tick-borne
diseases.
- With the development of the mechanization in
agriculture leads to a sharp decline of the buffalo population in the
Mekong River Delta and Red River Delta. It created a critical concern and
needs to have immediate action. It is emphasized that an appropriate
feeding management to exploit the meat production in an urgent task.
- There is a large area in Northern mountainous region
where the buffalo development seems still raising rapidly. The farmers and
the authority of this area should put more effort such as incentive
policies and also investment to develop the buffalo herd for dual
purposes: meat and draught. The development of buffalo in this region is
very perspective.
- It is clear
that there is a need to promote the research work on Swamp buffalo to
improve the reproduction and meat quality and also draft power. The
international cooperation in research and development in the region is
most welcomed.
Constraints:
- The neglect of Government policies and research
support is one of the main constraint. It appeared in different pricing on
buffalo meat and beef lack of provision of credit schemes for buffalo
producers and lack of research support in this field.
- Technical constraints appeared in nutrition and
feeding (feed supply shortages and irregularity limited grazing land etc).
In breeding there is almost no selection program even related to the bull
buffalo. Poor management in health care.
- There is public prejudice against buffalo meat which
cause the low price of buffalo meat in the market to compare with cattle
meat.
Recommendations:
The National
Workshop on “Swamp Buffalo Development in Vietnam”
recommends that:
- The Government should encourage the development of
Swamp buffalo through different incentive policies (credit, extension
service, marketing etc...).
- The authority of the provinces in Northern
mountainous areas and North
Central Coastline should put the buffalo development in the list of
priorities as conducting a buffalo development program in hilly areas.
- To encourage the researchers and extensionists to put
more attention to the buffalo reproduction and increase the buffalo herd.
- Parallel with improving the management of breeding,
health care, the feeding
technologies should be emphasized in the aim to produce more meat
with better quality. At the meantime the draught power is sufficient, a
part of buffalo herd should be used as beef producers.
- Improving the marketing system is an important factor
to promote buffalo development. To improve the image of the buffalo meat
in the eyes of consumers through
the communication system will contribute to increase the price of buffalo
and bring more profit to the producers
- Research cooperation and experiences exchange in the
region will be useful for each country and help to exploit this precious
genetic resources