Arusha — High incidences of disease, worsened by inadequate animal health services have caused the poor state of the livestock sector in the country, officials have said.

At a regional workshop organised by the Community Animal Health Network (Cahnet), Arusha regional commissioner Isidori Shirima said yesterday the performance of the sector was still very poor due to prevalence of diseases.

"This is caused by a number of factors such as livestock disease incidences and inadequate animal health services," he told participants from Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya and Ethiopia.

In a speech read on his behalf by Arumeru district commissioner Elias Wawa Lal, Mr Shirima said the sector had also been affected by inadequate information sharing among stakeholders.

He said this had resulted in low production and poor quality of products. But the RC said the Government had intervened to enhance productivity and ensure food security.

He urged Cahnet, which is spread across East Africa, to influence the adoption of community animal health through information sharing and related initiatives.

"This will help to ensure the availability of quality and affordable animal health services while enhancing livestock productivity by providing a platform for information sharing, policy interventions and stakeholder interaction," said Mr Shirima.

Cahnet was established in October 2001 through the partnership of various livestock research institutions including Farm Africa, Community Livestock Initiatives Programme (Clip) and Pact Kenya.

Since 2005, the network has been financially supported by Farm Africa, according to the RC who opened the two-day workshop in Arusha.

In Tanzania, Cahnet has a total of 44 members that include community-based organisations, community animal health workers (CAHWs), livestock training institutions, livestock research centres, district councils, private practitioners, drug suppliers and individuals.

The network has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Arusha-based Selian Agricultural Research Institute and West Kilimanjaro Livestock Research Centre.

The aim of the MoU is to allow the exchange of research technology findings to assist needy livestock keepers, according to Dr Jaribu Sultan of Farm Africa Tanzania based at Katesh, Hanang district.

In the EA region, the network has over 100 members. Through them it is reaching about 500,000 livestock keepers, most of them in the arid and semi-arid lands in the region.

According to Dr Sultan, in Tanzania, the network has managed to reach many livestock keepers through sharing and exchange of knowledge and experience of disease outbreaks, preventive approaches, husbandry and modern technology.