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Maarifa blog

Why publish? ILRI graduate fellows and early career researchers trained in scientific writing and publishing

Participants in a scientific writing and publishing module training for ILRI staff on 25-26 November 2014 in Nairobi, Kenya (photo credit: ILRI/Paul Karaimu). As part of their expected deliverables PhD students, postdoctoral fellows and early career researchers at the International Livestock...

Policies, institutions and livelihoods

Assessing the uptake and disease impact of Napier grass in Kenya

Napier grass is one of the most important fodder crops given its attributes which include ease of management, wide ecological range and high productivity. In Kenya, Napier grass contributes about 40% of the total fodder given to livestock, which highlights its importance in livestock production in...

  • Dorine Odongo
Policies, institutions and livelihoods

Linking poor livestock keepers to markets

An estimated one billion poor livestock keepers live in developing countries. About 600 million are found in South Asia, mostly in India. Sub-Saharan Africa has more than 300 million poor livestock keepers, mostly in East and West Africa, but also in the Southern and Central regions. Livestock...

  • Dorine Odongo
Safe Food Fair Food blog

Hawassa University scientist awarded DAAD Postdoctoral Fellowship to improve milk safety through research in Ethiopia

Written by Barbara Szonyi Dr Kebede Amenu, a lecturer at Hawassa University, has been awarded the Postdoctoral Fellowship in Sub-Saharan Africa by the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) . The purpose of the program is to provide opportunities to post-doctoral researchers from Sub-Saharan...

  • Kristina Rösel
Maarifa blog

ILRI comms – engagement and collaboration team under the microscope

Four new communications and knowledge management staff recently joined the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI): Brian Kawuma (ILRI Uganda), Julie Mateo (ILRI East and Southeast Asia), Mark Kwemoi (ReSAKSS in Nairobi, Kenya) and Mercy Becon (ILRI Tanzania). As part of their induction,...

  • Ewen Le Borgne
Safe Food Fair Food blog

Safe and fair food for informal markets: A food safety impact narrative

ILRI Clippings In most developing countries, food-borne diseases are a major cause of sickness and death. Whilst many countries acknowledge food safety is a major problem, there is little up-to-date, comprehensive information on food safety issues at national level. Safer food can generate both...

  • Kristina Rösel
Safe Food Fair Food blog

Food safety in informal markets in developing countries: Lessons from ILRI research

In poor countries, livestock and fish feed billions. In East Africa, for example, livestock provide poor people with one tenth of their energy and one quarter of their protein needs. Fish account for more than half of the animal protein intake for the 400 million poorest people in Africa and South...

  • ILRI Communications
Policies, institutions and livelihoods

Interactive research with smallholder farmers is key: ILRI scientist emphasizes at a regional share fair in Nairobi

A regional Share fair on Rural Women’s Technologies was held at the United Nations in Gigiri, Kenya, on 15-17 October, 2014. Themed ‘inspiring agricultural change’ , the three day exhibition was held over the International Day of Rural Women , and the World Food Day commemorated every year on 15...

  • Dorine Odongo
Safe Food Fair Food blog

Flies and pork – a love story

Contributed by Martin Heilmann Flies are attracted to meat – especially pork. And they aren’t the only ones to have this craving: Most people in Uganda really like pork – as is evidenced by Uganda’s having the highest pork consumption per person of all East-African countries (FAO, 2011). This...

  • Kristina Rösel
Maarifa blog

Open access; open facilitation: One week, two good ideas

This week is ‘ Open Access Week ‘ with lots of activities happening worldwide. A good week to celebrate the freedom of information to circulate. This week is also ‘ International Facilitation Week ‘; also a good opportunity to wonder how open facilitation helps knowledge circulate just as openly…...

  • Ewen Le Borgne
Maarifa blog

Creative (graphic) facilitation to support a dairy value chain seminar

What does it take to engage (large) private sector operators, smallholder farmers, knowledge centre specialists and researchers, civil servants and representatives from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) meaningfully in conversations around dairy value chains in Africa? Quite simply: good...

  • Ewen Le Borgne
Policies, institutions and livelihoods

ILRI scientists participate in the African dairy conference

Two senior agricultural economists with the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) were among high-profile speakers at the 10th African Dairy Conference and Exhibition held in Nairobi on 24 to 26 September 2014. Isabelle Baltenweck , interim program leader for ILRI’s Livelihoods, Gender...

  • Dorine Odongo