By Abdul Haro (Brooke partner, Practical Action's Area Coordinator)
05 Jul 2011

Donkeys are the main working animals in the region and for the first time in the history of the region these typically hardy animals are dying, as water sources dry up and pastures rapidly diminish.

We’ve launched an emergency programme, funded by international animal welfare charity the Brooke, to help working donkeys at risk of dehydration, starvation and disease.

I recently did an interview with the BBC World Service on this. At least 5,000 donkeys will receive supplementary feeding, improved access to veterinary treatments, including de-wormers, and vitamin supplements aimed at reducing opportunistic diseases and infections associated with drought.

Crucially, a fuel subsidy will also be agreed with five water users associations who operate motorised water boreholes. This will ensure donkeys have greater access to water in addition to working towards the Brooke’s long-term aim to raise the status of donkeys. 

Practical Action has been partnering with the Brooke to improve the lives of working animals since 2006. The Brooke funds the LIDOW (Livelihoods and Donkey Welfare Project) run by Practical Action. Just like in its other projects, Practical Action’s LIDOW activities are people focused, locally relevant and environmentally sensitive, offering tangible ways out of poverty.

The number of donkeys in Kenya is believed to be 1,832,519 according to the Kenya National Population Census results for 2009. Mandera County has a population of 191,664 donkeys, around 10% of all the donkeys in the country.

Donkeys in Mandera are mainly used for transport, either pulling carts or as pack animals. Pack donkeys are especially used by pastoralists while urban dwellers use carts. As the human population rises and many people join the urban and peri-urban poor, there is an increase in the number of donkeys used in the region.

The main welfare issues affecting donkeys in the area include weak body condition, back wounds, foot and leg problems, overloading, over-usage, and lack of proper care (feeding/watering/health care).

The LIDOW project is not aimed just at covering as many working animals as possible but to make a real impact on the welfare of the animals that are targeted. The project is aimed at changing management practices and care for donkeys by wider influencing of general public and decision makers.

Solutions to the many donkey welfare problems in the project areas include more attention to awareness creation and to the use of bottom-up participatory welfare extension methods involving donkey communities at all stages of the extension process.

To find out more about Practical Action, visit www.practicalaction.org