Translating animal breeding research into the real world: use of the sustainable livelihoods framework

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to introduce the sustainable livelihoods framework as a useful tool in translating animal breeding research into livelihood improvements for the world’s rural poor. This framework recognises the interacting components of assets, activities, vulnerability context, institutional context and livelihood outcomes. In essence, it provides a way of thinking about livelihoods and prompts users to ask the right questions in the design and implementation of potential interventions. While the framework is well recognised and used by researchers and development organisations supporting agricultural endeavours such as cropping, the same does not hold for animal breeding. It is proposed that the framework can be similarly used for animal breeding, and that its application will lead to the success of a greater proportion of development interventions around animal breeding, in terms of both their impact and sustainability.