From the project leaders
The end of December is racing
towards us – the end of the project. But it will herald a new project to build
on what we have achieved so far. We plan to have the Phase 2 submission to
ACIAR for their review in September.
Our two beef projects are working well together. This will
be exemplified by the bull-feeding experiment soon to start at Loes, with
people from both projects having input into how this will be conducted to
answer a good question and develop capacity for as many people as possible.
We are very pleased to have
Eric Thorne-George on the team as project coordinator in Dili.
Eric comes to us from a stint
with ILO, with whom he will maintain close contact.
Having such a person in the
team is a major bonus for everyone. His leadership in all project activities is
exemplary.
Eric is a spare-moments writer of fiction and fact. His
talent emerges in this newsletter describing a farmer visit in Fatucahi.
A Fatucahi milestone
Dark clouds hung heavy, full of
rain on the hills behind Fatucahi as we headed towards our afternoon activity,
hoping the down pour that threatened to turn our workplace into a sea of mud
would hold off until work had finished.
Fording the river on the way to
farmer Alberto’s, wishing I was wearing sandals as my boots filled with water.
We arrived at Alberto’s place,
one of our outreach farmers. It looked like the entire extended family had
turned out for the occasion.
Loaded with our gear we filed off towards the cattle yards
looking like a group heading out on safari, following the narrow path hedged on
both sides by very tall course abrasive grass.
We arrived at the fragile, but
well-maintained cattle yards where the two four-month-old calves waited. Their
mothers at a safe distance until their maternal instincts overtook their fear
of man.
Children swung like gymnasts on
the rails of the yards, not so frail after all, as the calves were gently
pushed and prodded into the crush, weighed by Jorge while Joanita entered the
data into the field book.
The calves were then hauled off
to their new residence with concerned mothers never far away, a four-bay
feedlot with a yard attached where the cows could be let in to feed the calves
in the evening.
There had clearly been a
sacrifice of labour, time and materials to complete these yards, solid heavy
construction, the ample sized feed trough made using timber that could have helped
finish the farmer’s house. Joanita gave a demonstration on how the leucaena
should be fed. The farmer and the Field Researchers are clearly proud of their
achievements and justifiably so, as this is a major shift in farming practices
here.
Back to the farmer’s house for coffee, more discussion on
the benefits of fat cattle then the short ride back. The clouds could hold off
no longer, a short shower of rain, drops the size of marbles exploded around us
but not enough to dampen our enthusiasm.
Household survey
At the beginning of the
project, many households were surveyed. Those within the project are being
resurveyed to assess the ACIAR project’s impact on farmers and their families
over this period of time.
In Guico, Farmer Rafael said
that over the three years he has intensified his cattle production. Having a
better quality yard means he has more control over his
Animals. This is particularly
relevant when treating sick cattle.
The farmer is concerned the project is coming to an end as
it has made the big difference to the way he manages his cattle.
August project team meeting
Fourteen of the project team
from MAF, UNTL, ACIAR and the collaborating LLPS project attended our August
meeting.
Items covered included:
Ø Preparation for cattle weighing in
Ø October
Ø Rute from UNTL will be appointed as a Field Researcher
at Lospalos in October
Ø Operation of beef system development groups in the new
project
Ø The concept of live weight production of cattle
Ø An update on the marketing and policy research
Ø Outreach program
Ø Exit strategies for farmers as the project ends
Ø End-of-project household surveys.
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| Leucaena farm after crop harvest, Loes 03 august 2016 |
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