Characteristics and Determinants of Dromedary Camel (Camelus dromedarius) Production in Borana Plateau, Ethiopia

Abstract

Drought mitigation strategies using dromedary camel production and lifestyle diversification are gaining popularity in the Borana plateau, Ethiopia. Borana villages have recently emphasized camel care as a strategy for responding to the severity of periodic droughts. Although Borana pastoralists are becoming more interested in camel management, the underlying causes of the region's expanding camel population have yet to be addressed. Despite available information on the characteristic of camel herders and determinants of production, the appropriate policy for the commercialization of camel potential has been hampered. The purpose of this study was to investigate the demographic characteristics and determinants of camel production. The variables of interest were; sources of income, culture, sources of starting camels, years of rearing experience, reasons for keeping camels, herd structure, and compositions, and availability of feed and water sources. A cross-sectional study design was conducted in the Yabelo, Elwaye, and Gomole districts of the Borana zone. The household survey; a structured survey questionnaire, a participatory focused group discussion (FGD), and key informant interviews (KII) were used. A total of 364 household interviews, 3 FGDs, and 12 KIIs were conducted to understand the depths of the socio-economic characteristics and determinant factors of camel production. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics in all the parameters tools using SPSS version 21. The Chi-square tests were conducted to evaluate the dependence between tribes’ affiliations and categorical variables. Demographic characteristics, sources of income, origins of camels, years of rearing experience, reasons for maintaining camels, herd structure, and compositions were not significantly different (P<0.05), according to the findings. The study revealed that the camel production determinants between the ethnic affiliations were also significant differences (p<0.05) between the ethnic groups and study areas. The findings were contradicting the expectation that different socioeconomic characteristics of camel herders and determinant factors among tribes. Therefore, this finding could be forwarded, a need for a comprehensive camel production policy as well as regulatory interventions for camel pastoralism in the study areas. and addressing other promotions on camels as “animal of the future”

Keywords: Camel herders, Camel production, pastoralists, Borana, Ethiopia

DOI: 10.7176/RHSS/12-13-03

Publication date:July 31^st 2022