Management Interventions and Indigenous Chicken Productivity: the Case of Smallholder Farmers in Western Kenya

Management interventions are very important for improved indigenous chicken (Gallus domesticus) productivity and have been promoted by both private and public extension service. The management interventions package considered here comprises feeding supplementation, vaccination, brooding, housing and chick rearing. Therefore, their adoption into production system would guarantee increased indigenous chicken productivity and reduction of extreme poverty in rural areas of developing countries. However, the smallholder farmers have been selectively, adopting only some management interventions despite technical recommendation from extension service to adopt the whole package. This book characterizes adopted management interventions, establishes factors that influence selective adoption and then quantifies the effect of adopted management interventions on productivity of indigenous chicken in Western Kenya. It draws policy implications emphasizing on formulation of pro-poor policy, improved training through extension programs, formation of self help groups and creation of strategies that would improve socio-economic conditions of smallholder farmers to overcome production constraints.