Rwanda pushes for 15-litre cow yield in Nyagatare District

RWANDA – According to the Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB), Nyagatare District has continued to struggle with low milk production despite having one of Rwanda’s largest cattle populations, with poor feeding, farm management and other livestock practices limiting productivity.

The district wants to raise its average milk yield from about 2.3 litres per cow per day to 6.3 litres next year and 15 litres within three years.

The district has 215,936 cattle, with Karangazi (one of the towns) accounting for the largest number among its 14 sectors at 46,041. However, each cow produces only 1.6 litres of milk per day, making it the fourth-lowest-producing sector.

Karama, with only 2,233 cattle, recorded the highest yield at 3.6 litres per cow per day, attributed to careful management and the adoption of good livestock practices.

Farmers living in Kigali account for about 35% of Nyagatare’s livestock farmers, according to Mayor Henry Kakoza, who said it in a meeting aimed at encouraging them to take a more active role in managing their farms.

Kakoza said remote management was affecting farm performance, particularly where owners relied on cowboys who lacked the necessary skills or whose interests did not always align with those of the owners.

Kakoza said low productivity means some livestock owners spend more maintaining their cattle than they earn from them.

He attributed the low productivity to farmers’ limited knowledge of cattle genetics, traditional livestock practices, inadequate farm management, and differences in the interests and skills of farm owners and cowboys.

Rwanda plans to increase daily milk production from 2.9 million litres to 6.8 million litres by 2029, with national programmes focusing on availability of improved genetics, animal feed, water, medicines and dairy infrastructure.

In 2023, the country’s annual milk production reached more than one million tonnes (one billion litres), representing a significant improvement in the dairy sector, according to a 2022/2023 annual report by the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (MINAGRI).

The Deputy Director General in charge of Animal Resources Development at Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB), Solange Uwituze, stated that the rising production was associated with various interventions in boosting the dairy sector.

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