Animal Health Governance And Services: A Case Of Pastoralists In Ngorongoro District, Tanzania

Abstract

While good governance has been on the development agenda, animal health governance issues have remained relatively neglected in the debate on animal health services. This has resulted in inadequate public and private sector investment in animal health services in pastoral remote areas. The study had three specific objectives: to assess animal health governance, to analyse animal health services, and to determine governance related factors affecting animal health services. The study was conducted in Ngorongoro District, Arusha Region, Tanzania. A cross-sectional research design was used in this study. A structured questionnaire with open and close-ended questions was administered. Purposive sampling procedure was used to select the district, three wards and three villages. A sample size of 125 respondents was drawn from three villages by using simple stratified sampling procedure. Data were analysed by the use of Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Descriptive statistics were computed to assess animal health governance. Frequencies, percentages and cross- tabulation were used to analyse animal health services. The findings showed there was a weak chain of command within the animal health governance structure. The findings also revealed poor availability of animal health services in pastoral areas. Research findings showed significant association between governance and animal health services χ2 = 6.085 (p < 0.05). There was significant differences in the mortality of livestock where governance factors held differently (T-test = 50.230, P < 0.05). This study recommends a need to improve animal health governance, supportive institutional and legal frameworks in order to improve animal health services in pastoral areas.