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MSRI’s cutting-edge research supports adaptive capacity of Kyrgyz livestock farmers

27.08.2020

The University of Central Asia (UCA) Mountain Societies Research Institute (MSRI) has been studying pasture resource management, impacts of climate change on local community livelihoods, and resilience assessment in Kyrgyzstan.

Pastoralism has been one of the MSRI’s major thematic research areas since its establishment in 2011. According to the Ministry of Agriculture of the Kyrgyz Republic, the area of pastures in the country totals more than 9 million ha, occupying more than 85 percent of the country’s total agricultural land; however, about 49 percent of Kyrgyzstan’s pastures are degraded. Recent MSRI projects focus on this important topic, which lies at the intersection of socioeconomic factors and climate change.

Traditionally, Kyrgyz livestock farmers practice vertical pasture rotation: a system in which livestock is moved from lower-elevation villages up to remote mountain pastures to gain weight to survive the winter season on hay reserves. In recent years, however, this system has proven to be less reliable due to grazing pressures, pasture degradation and climate change, which aggravates and multiplies existing threats to the conditions of pastures.

On the surface, these horses galloping against the backdrop of spring mountains seem like nothing more than a pretty picture one would find in a tourist brochure. However, the real story behind this beautiful scenery in the Naryn region of Kyrgyzstan is far more concerning. Local chabans (herders) note that vegetation in mountain pastures is becoming increasingly scarce, often forcing wildlife to descend into villages in search of food. For example, hunger has forced wild horses to migrate from remote pastures down to the plains, where villagers grow hay.

In collaboration with the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), MSRI developed a new approach towards understanding and assessing resilience capacity in rural mountain communities. The project was led by MSRI’s research fellow Dr Lira Sagynbekova. The methodology of using subjective approaches to measure resilience emphasizes the power of local people to understand and communicate their own resilience capacities, without the need for long and complex surveys. The project revealed the importance of social capital and labor migration in enhancing resilience of rural communities to climate-related and socioeconomic shocks and stressors.

“Kyrgyzstan is the third most vulnerable country to climate change impacts in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, primarily due to the sensitivity of its agricultural systems to climatic change,” said Dr Sagynbekova. “Impacts such as climate temperature change could cause altered precipitation patterns and more frequent heat extremes. This leads to an increased incidence of aridity and drought, particularly in the mountain pastures. Since Kyrgyzstan’s land area is 90 percent mountainous, it is increasingly important to build resilience to these climate changes, and to enable communities to continue thriving.”

A recent study by the MSRI, “Characteristics and profitability of livestock-based farming systems in At-Bashy, Naryn Oblast”, revealed that the current animal production method in the region is not only unsustainable in terms of pasture use, but also highly risky due to high mortality rates and low market prices for animals. It highlights the importance of understanding the farm agricultural production system in order to make efficient interventions that can contribute to improved crop and animal productivity and sustainable pasture use.

“The Naryn region is one of the most important livestock production areas in Kyrgyzstan, with highland pastures covering nearly 90 percent of the designated agricultural land. Prevailing agricultural production systems of local smallscale farms focus on animal husbandry, which depend on a mix of crop and pasture land around settlements and higher elevation summer pastures,” states Azamat Azarov,co-author of the study and native of the Naryn region. “Insufficient production of winter feed and the degradation of pastures around villages due to over-stocking, especially in early spring, result in low fattening, decreased health of livestock and subsequent low profitability from animal husbandry.”

In addition to providing new scientific knowledge, the study offers recommendations and tools that can help to better benefit from market opportunities for livestock and agricultural products in a sustainable way, and enable farmers to adjust and modify their farm management.

MSRI is currently developing follow-up activities to effectively transfer these research insights and recommendations to decision makers at national and local levels and increase the adaptive capacity of local livestock farmers.

News and photo from Alma Uzebekova, University of Central Asia

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