Livestock production as an integral of home garden in Nigeria

Abstract

Globally, hunger and poverty are major challenges with number of household malnourished increasing daily. Conscious integration of the home  gardens strategy into peri-urban and urban development can help to achieve food security. In this regard, a total of 412 questionnaires were administered to home garden owners around the National Horticultural Research Institute (NIHORT) in Ibadan (Southwest Nigeria), Mbato (Southeast Nigeria), Bagauda (Northwest Nigeria) and Dadinkowa (Northeast Nigeria). In all, 366 (88.8%) questionnaires were found suitable for analysis. The data collected was analyzed using descriptive statistical analytical tools. Majority of people involved in the practice of home gardening were male (78%) and young <50 years (53%), implying that they were capable of handling more tedious activities than the female and the elderly respectively. Land and house ownership were found to be the most important factor in home gardening. Goat (77.1%), sheep (58.7%) and local fowl (49.7%) were the dominant livestock in the areas investigated. Most of the livestock were fed with household waste and crop residues which ought  to have caused great problem through microbial build up, while the animal wastes were usually incorporated into the soil to serve as soil  amendments. Some of the livestock owners were also mindful of zoonosis.

Keywords: animal husbandry, household, waste utilization, urban agriculture, food security