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The impact of political crisis on smallholder pig farmers in western Kenya, 2006–2008*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 August 2011

Cate E. Dewey ,
Jared M. Wohlgemut ,
Mike Levy  and
Florence K. Mutua
Cate E. Dewey*
Affiliation:
Department of Population Medicine, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, N1G 2W1, Guelph, Canada
Jared M. Wohlgemut
Affiliation:
Department of Population Medicine, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, N1G 2W1, Guelph, Canada
Mike Levy
Affiliation:
Department of Population Medicine, Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, N1G 2W1, Guelph, Canada
Florence K. Mutua
Affiliation:
Department of Public Health Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Agriculture and Veterinary Sciences, University of Nairobi, PO Box 29053–00625, Nairobi, Kenya
*
Email: [email protected]
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Abstract

Farmers and families in western Kenya have grown increasingly dependent on the pig industry as a primary resource for savings and income. The post-election crisis in 2008 had a serious impact on people living in western Kenya because the region was the stronghold of the opposition Orange Democratic Movement (ODM). The pig industry was affected in a number of ways, including an increase in the price of food and farm inputs, sale of pigs to provide food and other essentials for the family, or because of forced migration, leading to a drastic decrease in numbers of pigs. This will have a negative effect on the long-term viability of the pig industry due to decreased availability of growing, breeding and market weight animals.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Modern African Studies , Volume 49 , Issue 3 , September 2011 , pp. 455 - 473
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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Footnotes

*

Collaboration with International Livestock Research Institute (Kenya) was greatly appreciated. We thank all the smallholder pig farmers, local pig butchers and government extension workers for their participation and cooperation in this study. Funding for this project was provided by Veterinarians without Borders-Vétérinaires Sans Frontières (Canada), and the University of Guelph through the Bull Travel Fund. The research work was approved by the Director of Veterinary Services in Kenya; the Board of Postgraduate Studies, University of Nairobi; and the Animal Care Committee and the Research Ethics Board of the University of Guelph.

References

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