Evaluation report of the USAID Tunisian livestock feed production and utilization project

Special evaluation by a USAID/GOT team covers the period 4/78-10/80 and is based on site visits, interviews with project personnel, and farmer questionnaires. The project has strengthened the following areas of livestock development: sector and farm management; participant and inservice training; extension system; forage seed projects; forage production (FP); and livestock production. Progress has also been made toward institutionalizing an extension system for FP and use. Specific achievements include establishment and staffing of a central Office of Livestock and Pastures to plan and implement livestock development projects; selection of 83 integrated farms for operation in 19 governorats and development of a detailed farm plan; providing U.S. training to 19 Tunisian technicians, with four receiving M.S. degrees and 15 receiving short-term training; expanding the extension system to include 58 extension agents assigned to 19 regional offices; development of inservice training consisting of seminars, contact with livestock professionals from Tunis, field days, and a technical reference handbook for agents in the field; increased seed production nationwide, along with a sound program for seed development and certification; increased numbers of forage demonstrations; annual assistance to over 3,000 farmers for establishing seed or FP plantings; yearly completion of the 2-year training program by about half of the participants and adequate replacement of trainees; adoption by neighboring farmers of demonstration farm activities; and implementation of four demonstration techniques to improve cattle production. The team believes that farmer income will increase if the technology developed is correctly adopted by farmers outside the demonstrations and if it continues to be used when free inputs cease. A total of 40 recommendations are given. See the abstracts of PD-AAJ-324 and XD-AAJ-324-A for resulting USAID/T action decisions and the responses of the project manager.