By Natsuki Iida | Member of Advocacy Team
Since January 2023, we have been implementing a project to strengthen the management of an agricultural cooperative in Samlot District, Battambang Province, Cambodia.
This project, facilitated by the cooperative, provides support to vulnerable households in landmine-affected areas, including landmine victims and the impoverished. Support is delivered through home gardening and livestock raising initiatives.
To ensure the long-term sustainability of the project, we are providing training to cooperative staff on program implementation and cooperative management practices, including accounting, sales, and administrative procedures.
The core of the project is a livestock support system where chickens, ducks, pigs, or goats are loaned to eligible households. Once the animals reproduce, recipients return the same number of animals plus an additional "interest" to the cooperative. These animals are then loaned to the next participating household, creating a sustainable cycle of support.
They started breeding in July 2023, and by spring 2024, a significant number of livestock have been returned by the participating households.
Out of the 40 participating households, 9 have successfully completed the return process, and are ready to pass the animals on to the next beneficiaries. We hope that these households will continue to follow the expert advice they received and successfully turn their livestock into a sustainable source of income.
However, during a recent visit to the village, we identified a key challenge in helping participating households turn their livestock into a sustainable source of income. The households often find themselves in a weak position as producers when selling their animals.
One pig-raising household shared a concerning story. Local buyers come to the village to purchase livestock, but these buyers often use tampered scales to make the animals appear lighter or lift the animals slightly during weighing to get a lower weight reading.
Without knowledge of market prices, negotiating fair prices with buyers can be difficult. The cooperative's director shared a personal experience where a buyer offered him a different price for a pig than the price offered to a participating household, highlighting the potential for exploitation.
To address these challenges and empower the participating households, we are exploring the possibility of the cooperative acting as a collective seller for the livestock. This would enable fairer negotiations and ensure more stable prices for both the households and the buyers. It would be a fitting next step, given the cooperative's role in delivering this vital support program.
**Moving forward, our primary goals for the second year of the livestock support program are:**
1. **Continued Support for Breeding and Disease Prevention:** We will continue to provide assistance to participating households to ensure successful breeding and proper disease management.
2. **Establishing a Cooperative Sales System:** We will work closely with the cooperative to develop a system for collective sales of livestock, including exploring options for slaughter, distribution channels, and transportation.
By addressing these challenges and implementing these strategies, we aim to create a truly sustainable and empowering livestock program for the participating households.
We kindly ask for your continued support.
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