-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
1/13
PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SECTOR ROLES
IN THE SUPPLY OF VETERINARY
SERVICES
Cornelis de Haan and Dina L. Umalis
Introduction
Poor livestockhealth remainsone of the main constraints o livestockdevelopment n many
developingcountries. While globaldata are not available,data from individualcontinentsand
countries lead to an estimateof several billiondollars in losses n animal products caused by diseases.
For example, in Sub-SaharanAfrica losses becauseof diseasesare estimatedat US$2 billion per year,
of which half could be attributed o direct losses due to mortality,and the other half to indirect losses
through reduced growth, fertility, and work output (FAO 1985).Similarly, n Latin America, five
diseases alone (hog cholera, foot and mouth disease, brucellosis, uberculosis,and rabies) are
estimated o cause losses of US$900 million annually FAO 1990).
But the
losses caused by animal diseasesare not restricted to lower outputs. Diseases
prevent
the introductionof livestock n certain areas (for example, n Africa loss of large tracks of high
potential and because of African animal sleepingsicknessand the skin disease
dermatophilosis)
nd
preclude the use of more productiveanimals such as crossbreddairy cattle and improvedpigs and
poultry breeds in others. Furthermore, certain livestockdiseases are directly transmitted o man, and
disease control hus not only acquires economic,but also social and political mportance.
Disease controlservices,
therefore, have been, and still are, an important nput into livestock
sector development.Fifteen percent of the Bank's livestock ending, or an average of about US$66
million per year, was destinedover the last decade o veterinaryhealth improvements see figure 1).
This share is particularly mportant n
Sub-SaharanAfrica, althoughmuch less in the other regions
(table 1). Furthermore, in most developingcountries,veterinaryservices consumeabout 60 to 80
percent of the budget allocated
o livestocksupportefforts.
Historically, veterinary services
have been the domainof the public sector
and in many
developingcountries hey remain so. This is partly
a result of their original establishment s a
detachmentof the army to protect horses and other pack animals, and largely reinforced by the
public-sector
orientation n the 1960s and 1970swhich viewed
governmentas the main spur of
development.Furthermore, past veterinaryservices were involvedalmostexclusively n the
prevention of highly infectiousdiseases, which have strong public good characteristicsor externalities
associatedwith their utilization. However,more recentlyan increasingnumber of functionsare
carried out
in cooperationwith, or transferred o, private operators.
Livestock Adviserand Consultant
n the AgriculturalTechnologyand NaturalResources
Division, Agriculture
and Rural DevelopmentDepartmentof the World
Bank. The authors wish to
thank Gershon Feder and T. Schillhornvan Veen for their insightfulcommentson a previous draft of
this paper.
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
2/13
-126-
Figure 1. Livestock
Health and Total
LivestockFunding n Bank Projects, 1982-91
So0
400-
400
200
100
0
1222 1224
1925 1227
1222 1221i
ealith r:;
Total Livoestck
Source:
World Bank data.
Table 1. Percentage
Share of LivestockHealth
Expendituresover Total Livestock Funding in
Bank Projects by Region,
1982-91
Region
Percentage
Africa
62
Asia
14
Latin America and the Caribbean
9
Europe, Middle East, and North
America
8
Source:World Bank data.
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
3/13
-127-
This paper provides an overviewof (a) the trends which spur increasedprivatization;
(b) the
economicconceptsunderlying
he efficiencyof delivery of veterinaryservices and that
subsequently
govern private and public sector roles; (c) the progress in privatizationof veterinary services,
includingsome examplesof successfulprivatization; nd (d) the future technologyneeds and policy
requirements o facilitateprivatization.
The Need for Privatization
Privatizationof some veterinary serviceshas received a strong impetus n the developing
world over the last decade. Several factors contributed o this trend:
Fiscal constraintsand poor management f resourceshave led to a decline n the
operational fficiency of public
sector services.The number of veterinary staff has grown faster
than the means (such as vehicles and fuel, drugs and vaccines) o support them in many African and
Asian countries, thus forcing the services to cut back on field activities.For example, while 33
percent of the budgets of the veterinary servicesof six Saheliancountrieswas allocated o operating
expenditures n 1961-62, his share has declined o 25 percent by 1975and to sixteen percent by 1988
(de Haan and Bekure 1991). Five countries n West Africa allocated ess than 5 percent of their
national livestockbudget to the fundingof nonsalary ecurrent expenditures.While the situation in
other regions may be less serious han in these Saheliancountries, he general tendencyof relatively
decreasingavailabilityof recurrent funds is evident in most of the developingworld.
The development f new technologieshas shifted the focus from mostly herd-level
prevention which is more compatiblewith public ntervention o the treatmentof individual
animals which is more suitablefor privatehandling.Declining and areas for grazing due to
populationpressures have led to more intensiveproduction.This, in turn, spurred the use of more
capital intensive echnologies,such as higher value hybrid animals, or which individual reatments
are more easily economically ustified. Moreover, he introductionof mass fabricationof veterinary
pharmaceuticals as reduced heir cost of productionand subsequently heir prices, making individual
interventionsmore attractive economically.
Traditional ivestock arming s shifting toward more commercialized perations.Cattle
ownership s shifting from the traditionalcattle-owning thnic groups with considerable ndigenous
knowledge, o much less experienced ommercialcrop farmers in severalregions of Africa and
China. These commercialoperations equire a higher level of service. At the same time, there is an
increasingawarenessby traditional ivestockherders of the benefitsof modern veterinary medicine.
Increasing upply of veterinarians nd
shrinkingpublic market.Due to fiscal contraints,
governmentshave been forced to abandon heir policy of employing ll veterinarygraduates. In
addition, some regions
(that is, the Anglophonedevelopingworld, particularlyIndia and East Africa),
have seen a proliferationof
veterinary aculties esulting n an increasingsupplyof
veterinarians.
Private
practice is further enhancedby the openingof opportunities
o sell related products such as
drugs, feeds, and farm tools. These factors contribute o the large numbersof veterinariansseeking to
establishprivate practice.
Thus demand for veterinary serviceshas increased tronglyover the last decades, whereas
public sector supply in many
countriesstagnatedor deteriorated.At the same time a
group of young
graduates, all keen
to establish hemselvesprivately,has become available n many developing
countries.Togetherthese factors are generatinga significant
orce for privatization.
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
4/13
-128-
Types of Veterinary Services
Veterinary services can be classified n four categories:(a) curativeservices,particularly the
diagnosisand treatment o treat diseased animals; (b)preventiveservices o stop the
emergenceand
spreading of diseases through vaccination,vector control and control measures, such as quarantine
and forced slaughter of affected animals; (c)productionof veterinarypharmaceuticals;
nd (d)
human
healthprotection, such as sanitary nspection
of animalproducts.
Economic Principles
In assessingwhether these servicescan be privatized, t is necessary o obtain a clear
understandingof the nature of the service (Umali,Feder, and de Haan 1992).Veterinary services can
be classified nto four categories table 2):
Private good.
A good or service wherein the personwho paid for the good or service
exclusivelybenefits from it and no one else is able to avail of the good or service at the same time
(for
example, treatmentof an animal's broken
leg).
Private good with externalities.A private good or servicewhose productionor consumption
has spillovereffects on other individuals,although he other individualsare not chargedfor the
spilloverbenefits or compensated or the negativespillovereffects(for example, vaccinationprovides
spilloverdisease protection to animalsowned by others).
Private good with moral hazardproblems.A private good or service whose quality is not
transparent or cannot be easily assessed (for example, vaccine qualitycannot be easily evaluated).
Public good. A good or service wherein he consumption f the good or service by one
individualdoes not reduce its availability o others and the person who paid for the service cannot
excludeothers from free riding or using the serviceas well (for example, food hygiene and
inspection).
Following his classification, able 2 defines the appropriatesectoraldistributionof
responsibilities.Clinicalcare provided to animals s generallya private good.
1
Vaccination gainst
contagiousdiseases involvesexternalities protectionof animalsbelonging o other farmers and export
interests), which to some extent can be internalized hrough government nterventions.These
measures may take the form of mandatory egulations uch as the issuanceof vaccinationcertificates
or the subsidization f vaccinations.However, n the absenceof good enforcementmeasures for such
ex-antecontrols in many developingcountries, he direct involvement f the government s required
either through direct provisionor subcontracting o private operators. Veterinarysurveillance,which
ensures hat proper steps are taken to avoid the spread of a highly contagiousdisease to other
farmers, is a public good.
In vector control, the economicnature of the control measure dependson the technology
used. The classical methodsof vector control nvolveexternalities dipping)and free-rider problems
(aerial spraying). More recent technologyusing individualherd or animal treatments, such as special
screens and traps,
minimize he externalities nvolved n their utilizationand enable individual armers
to capture the benefits almostexclusively.They are, therefore, more suitable or individual
management nd payment.
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
5/13
-129-
Table 2. EconomicClassification
of
the Types of
LivestockServices
Livestock 7vpe of EconomicGood Measures o Correctfor Sectoral Qerv
service
Public Private
Externality Moral Hazard Public Private
Curative
Diagnosis
Xo
YY
Treatment
Xw
YY
Preventive
Vaccination
X'
y yy
Vaccineproduction X YY
Vector
control
Tick control
X
Y
YY
Tsetse control X X Y YY
Veterinary surveillance X
yy
Diagnosticsupport
X*
Y YY
Quarantine
X YY
Drug quality
control
X YY
Veterinary
research X X YY YY
Human healthprotection
Food hygiene/inspection X
YY
Provision of
veterinary upplies
Production X YY
Distribution
X
YY
Note: * private goods with externalities;
**
privategood with externalities
only in the case of
infectiousdiseases; YY economically
ustified; Y economicallyustified under special
circumstances.
Source:
Umali,
Feder, and
de Haan 1992.
The productionof
pharmaceuticals
vaccinesand drugs)
is a private good. Although he
profits of
new veterinary pharmaceuticals
an be appropriated
more easily, the
market for veterinary
medicines
againstspecific
tropical diseases in many developing
countries
s so small. This
presents a
major disincentive o research nto socially desirableproductsby local privatepharmaceutical
companies.
Unless
internationalmarkets
can be tapped(the strategypursued
by multinationals),
ome
public sector
assistance and even from
international ublic agencies)will be required o bridge
this
gap.
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
6/13
-130-
EconomicViability
Entry into the veterinaryservices market by a privatepractitionerwill depend on whether a
practice can be profitablysustained. f a favorableeconomicenvironment lready exists, private
profitabilitywill depend primarily on the type of productionsystem, the prevailing livestock density,
and the extent to which economiesof scale apply (Umali,Feder, and de Haan 1992). Economiesof
scale are highly relevant in veterinary services, because heir provision nvolves a large proportion of
fixed costs. The provisionof clinicaland preventivecare requires veterinarians nd veterinary
auxiliary personnel to travel to the points of servicedelivery (for example, he farm,
veterinary posts,
or a designated top). In such situations, he larger the number of units of service provided to clients
at each point of service delivery, the lower will be the cost per unit. Specifically, he veterinarian's
fee, transportation, and other transport-related osts can be spread over a larger number of animals
and thus reduce the per unit cost of the service. The lower the costs, the more economicallyattractive
they become to livestock armers.
Because he provisionof veterinary services entailssignificant ndivisible ixed costs,
veterinarianswill not set up private practices unless he market for their services is large enough to
sustain profitable operations.Thus, high density ivestockareas will favor private sector participation,
because these localities can generate a volumeof demand sufficient o sustain private veterinary
practice. From the farmer's perspective, his cost differentialcan becomea screening device as to
who can afford veterinary services. Farmers with large herds are better able to take advantageof
veterinary services than small farmers, because heir cost per unit is smaller and thus makes the
services more affordable. However,small farmers can overcome his handicap hrough membership n
producer organizationsand cooperatives hat provide livestockhealth and support services. As a result
of the pooling of veterinary service needs of smallholder armers through hese organizations, hey
are able to take advantageof economiesof scale in the deliveryof the services as well as provide
farmers with a mechanism or internalizing he externalities ssociatedwith some services.
Using World Bank data on the cost of establishinga privateveterinary practice in Cameroon
(1986), Guinea (1986), Kenya (1988), and Uganda(1990), Umali, Feder,
and de Haan (1992),
estimated he financialbreakevennumber of veterinary ivestockunits for traditional, semi-intensive
and intensiveproductionsystems. The results are presented n table 3. They clearly demonstrate he
importanceof the type of productionsystem and the importanceof pharmaceutical ales on the
financialviabilityof a private veterinary practice.To earn
a minimum eturn of US$15,000 a year,
assuming240 trips a year and a 50 percent marginon drug sales, a veterinarianwould have to treat
an additional7,600 to 13,400 veterinary ivestockunits (VLUs) in traditionalsystems and about 755
to 1,344 VLUs in the intensivesystems. If it is assumed hat the veterinarian ravels within a 15
kilometerradius or an area
of 707 square kilometers, he breakeven ivestockdensity in Guinea will
be 15.3 VLUs per square kilometer,slightlymore than the prevailing ivestockdensity of 14 VLUs
per square kilometer. In such cases, auxiliaries,with much
lower remunerationexpectations,become
attractive alternatives.
Thus privatization cannot and should not be undertaken as a broad
strategy; instead a
selective policyshould be pursued, taking into account the economic character of each of the
veterinary services and the economic feasibility
of
private practice. As a first step, the transfer of
private good services to the private sector
shouldbe promoted.Secondservices that involve
externalitiesor moral hazard problemswill require some form of public intervention.Subcontracting
to private operators is one option. Third choicesalso have to be made regarding the type of veterinary
practitioner o promote. In many livestockproductionsystems,
he establishmentof professional
practices is not viable financiallyand lower cost operators such as auxiliariesneed to be promoted.
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
7/13
-131-
Table 3. BreakevenVLUs for Private VeterinaryPractice in Cameroon,Guinea, Kenya, and
Uganda by ProductionSystem
Countr
Cameroon Guinea Kenya Uganda
Production ystem
(1986) (1986)
(1988) (1990)
Traditional
Pure vet service 6,775 3,997 11,281 5,352
Vet service +
25
margin 3,413 3,672 10,500 4,014
Vet service + 50% margin 51 3,347 9,720 2,677
Intermediate
Pure vet service 1,129 666 1,880 892
Vet service +
25
margin 569 612 1,750 669
Vet service + 50% margin NA 558 1,620 446
High intensity
Pure vet service 0677 400 1,128 535
Vet service + 25% margin 341 367 1,050 401
Vet service + 50% margin NA 335 972 268
Note:Fees are assumed o be-traditional = US$2, intermediate= US$12, and high
intensity = US$20; 240 trips a year. NA--at50 percent margin, drug sales exceed total costs of
operations.
Experiences in Veterinary Privatization
In the developedworld, veterinaryservices are mostly privatelyoperated. Veterinaryservices
in these countriesshare several commoncharacteristics.The government ole is generally educed to
the deliveryof pure public goods. This includescontrol over epizootics nd zoonosesand food
control and hygiene. Growing priority is also given to the enforcementof animal welfare legislation
by the public veterinary services. Externalities nvolved n the controlof enzooticdiseases are
internalized hrough the creation of disease control
funds, financedby compulsorymemberships n
insuranceschemes
and producer organizationsand specialproduct levies. The private input supply
companies(pharmaceuticals nd feed) are becoming ncreasingly nvolved n extension.
In the developingworld, overall progress in privatizingveterinary services has been slow. A
survey of livestockspecialists rom the World Bank and other governmentagenciescarried out by
Umali, Feder, and de Haan (1992) showed hat in only a small number of developingcountriesare
veterinary services provided by private practitioners table 4). The progress in Africa is noteworthy.
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
8/13
-132-
Table 4. Sectoral Channelfor the Deliveryof the Clinicaland Prophylactic
Veterinary Services n the DevelopingWorld
1991
Numberof Countries n the Region
Partly government
Region Mainlypublic partly private Mainlyprivate Total
Africa
Clinical 12 14 5 31
Vaccinations 25 6 - 31
Latin America
Clinical 1 2 2 5
Vaccinations 2 1 2 5
SoutheastAsia
Clinical 6 2 - 8
Vaccinations 8 - 8
Source:Umali, Feder, and de Haan 1992.
Examples of Successful Veterinary Privatization
he
Central African Republic
The Central African Republic CAR)offers an interestingexampleof a private, almost
exclusivelyuser-run, animal health care system. On the one hand, the very limitednumber of
veterinary graduates and the low livestockdensity mpeded he establishment f profitable private
professionalpractices; on the other hand, the high prevailingdisease challengemade access to
veterinary inputs highly critical. In response o the increasingdemand for animal health services, two
successiveBank projectshave built a basic animal health care system under the auspices of the
nationalherders organization FNEC) which suppliesproducerswith inputs and provides raining in
the use of these inputs (for a more detaileddiscussion efer to de Haan and Bekure 1985; Umali,
Feder, and de Haan 1992). Training is provided n cooperationwith drug suppliers, who finance a
large part of the productionof adapted raining materials.Compulsoryvaccinations s the only activity
retained by the government.
The following discussions llustratesome of the main experiences.After veterinary drug
distributionwas transferred o FNEC, the sale of veterinarypharmaceuticals rew strongly, thus
refuting he allegations hat farmers wouldnot be willing o purchasedrugs at full cost. Veterinary
pharmaceutical ales through the formal sector umped from US$12,000a year in 1982 o
approximatelyUS$2.1 million n 1991(de Haan and Bekure 1991).
As a result of the development f a reliableopen market system, purchasesof veterinary
pharmaceuticals rom the black market dropped. Successive ouseholdbudget surveys showed that,
while in 1982, 67
percent of the farmers bought their veterinarypharmaceuticals rom the black
market, this percentagedropped to 18 percent in 1985and to only 7 percent in 1988(de Haan and
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
9/13
-133-
Bekure 1991).This significantdrop providesa strong counterargumentagainstrestrictivedistribution
policies. The exclusiveright of government ervices and professional eterinarians o distribute and
administerdrugs is advocated requentlyby the publicsector becauseof concern hat the distribution
and administration f veterinarypharmaceuticals y laymenwould ead to drug resistance and adverse
consequences o human health. However,recent experience eems to show that such restrictive
policies lead to a much more dangerous ituationof covert and improperuse, and poses a greater
danger to public health. If the official distribution
ystem cannotprovide adequatesupplies, and
provided that farmers are given proper educationand training in the use of veterinary drugs, they
should be allowed access to these drugs.
Poor herders procured relativelymore veterinarydrugs than the wealthier ones. Household
surveys in the CAR showed hat poor farmers used on average 50 percent more veterinarydrugs per
head than wealthier ones (Umali, Feder, and de Haan 1992).The finding hat a commercialopen
system is more equitable han a subsidizedpublicsystem is confirmedby Leonard's (1985) findings in
Kenya, where he showed that the transition o a more commercial ystem increased he number of
visits the animal health agents carried out by a factor of ten, and those visits especiallybenefitedpoor
farmers. In effect Leonard found that the agents graduated heir charges according o their assessment
of a farmer's ability to pay, and that the poorer farmers on average paid less for the same service
than the wealthier ones.
However, the CAR operation s still not completely ustainable.Although in the beginningof
the program the operationsof FNEC were managed trictly on a commercialbasis, their success has
led donors and government o try to add socialobjectives o the organization.First for political
reasons, the input distributionsystem was forced to expandsales to low-density ivestock areas, while
obliging it to maintainuniform prices throughout ts distributionnetwork. Seconddonors and the
governmentadded other socialfunctions o the organization uch as literacy campaignsand range
management ctivities, which further burdened commercial perations.Third there is a continuing
tendency of public interference n the day-to day FNEC management temming rom government's
apprehensionof fostering an independent ower base at its side. Finally here is evidence of rent-
seeking from governmentofficials.Future strategieswill, therefore, need to isolate this activityfrom
donor and government nterference.
Morocco
In Morocco he privatizationof the animalhealth services was introducedas part of a
structural adjustmentprogram in 1985. The livestockdensities n the high potentialarea of the
country and the profitabilityof the intensivedairy and poultry farms permit the establishmentof
private professionalpractices. From only two private veterinarians n 1983, the number soared to
seventy-sixby the end of 1989 and to ninety-threeby the end of 1991. Currentlymore than one-third
of all Moroccanveterinary graduatesoperates in the private sector (World Bank data). They have
concentrated n the high potentialareas, coveringabout 42 percent of the country's cattle population
and 30 percent of its sheep population.
Two key governmentpoliciesbrought about this success: (a) a policy of subcontracting ome
of the veterinary services to accreditedprivateveterinarians,particularly he compulsoryvaccination
campaigns(these schemes account for about one-third o one-halfof the private veterinarian's net
income and provide essential ob security to the incumbent rivate veterinarian);and (b) a strict
governmentpolicy o curtail the provisionof all curative services and the sale of veterinary inputs and
noncompulsory accinationsas soon as a private veterinarian s established n the area.
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
10/13
-134-
These policies have resulted in net savings
for the governmentand improved ivestock
protection: (a) the average cost a head vaccinatedby the public veterinary service was calculatedat
DH4.58 a head vaccinated, whereas he fees paid by government o private veterinarians amounted o
DH3 a head; and (b) in 1989 he private veterinariansvaccinated66 percent of the stock in their area
on average, whereas he coverageof the publicsector reached only 52 percent (World Bank data).
Policy Requirements or Privatization
These experiences ead to the identification f the followingmain policies required to bring
about privatization.
Eliminationof policiesthat promoteunfair competition.Subsidizedservices and
moonlighting y governmentveterinaryagents are one of the most serious barriers to entry. The
introductionof full cost recoveryfor private good services and suppliesprovided by the public sector
is thus a key prerequisite for any privatization ffort. Other barriers to entry, which should be
eliminated, includeveterinary drug import and distribution estrictionsand price controls. Studies in
the developedworld (for example, Wise
1988),as well as indications rom the developingworld,
show that the sale of pharmaceuticals ccounts or between30 and 50 percent of the incomeof a
veterinary practice.
Institutionof attractive ubcontractingpolicies.Manyof the public good services (meat
inspectionand diagnosticservices) and private goods with externalities compulsoryvaccinations)can
be very effectively ubcontracted o private operators under government upervision.
Establishment f mutual nsurance chemesand/or producergroups to create the
fundingmechanisms or the control of diseases,whichcannot be funded through direct
payment.The creation of an autonomous und wouldprovide a more reliable source of financingfor
the paymentof private subcontractors han the unreliablegovernmentbudget and would, therefore, be
an important eature of any privatization ffort.
Establishment f the enabling egislation adapted o
the
conditionsof the country which
will protect and stimulate private animal health practice. This means that in those countries where
the availabilityof private professionalveterinarians nd/or the nature of the economic environment
constrains he establishmentof private professionalpractices, legislativeprovisionsshould be
established or auxiliary practices. Past legislation n the developingworld has tended to copy the
very restrictiveEuropean regulations,
which eserved the right to administermost veterinary
drugs to
professionalveterinarians.
Researchand Technology
Needs
Veterinaryresearch ends to concentrateon disease control echnologyas such, with
inadequateattentiongiven to the capabilities f the system o deliver this technology.However, the
delivery system most likely will remain poor in much of the developingworld, and future control
strategiesand technologies, herefore, need to be tailored increasingly o fit deficientfunding and
poor infrastructure.This means that greater priority needs to be given to the definitionof the cost-
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
11/13
-135-
effectiveness
f the disease
controlmeasuresand the development f diagnostic
and control
techniques, which are low cost and can be manipulated y nonprofessional taff under poor
infrastructureconditions.
Cost-effective
isease control measurescan only
be developedon the basis of a good
understandingof the relative importanceof different
diseases. This information s notoriouslyabsent
in developingcountries, and the use of cost-benefit nalyses in decisionmaking oncerning he
launchingof a disease control campaignor moving rom control o eradicationpolicies is very rare.
Staffavailabilityand political pressureseem to be more important riteria. A better definitionof the
relative importanceof different diseases n any given environment nd of the economic eturns to
eventual control or eradicationcampaignsdeservesa high priority in publicly sponsoredanimal health
research programs.
Low-cost and easily manipulablediagnostic ools and control echnologieswill also be
important nputs into sustainableanimal health care systems.The followingexiting research is being
carried out in this area, which could revolutionizeanimalhealth care systems.
Animalside diagnostic ets. Monoclonal ntibody echniqueswill yield simple test sets to
allow lay persons to diagnosedisease types with a high degree of reliability (WinrockInternational
forthcoming).
Genetically esistantanimals.Clearly, geneticallybased disease resistance s the most
sustainable orm of disease control and there is increasing vidence hat there is considerablegenetic
resistance to several diseases, such as Africananimal sleepingsicknessand internal parasites. Further
developmentof disease resistancewill be assistedby the considerableongoing esearch effort in
identifyinggenetic markers, which will allow early identification nd acceleratedmultiplication f the
most resistant genotypes ILRAD 1991).
User-friendlyparasitecontrolmethods.Great promise is provided by the developmentof
screens and traps to catch tsetse flies (the transmitterof African animal sleepingsickness)and by a
new generation of pyrethroid-based nsecticideswith a long residual effect, which kills the flies before
they can transmit the disease.
These technologies re simple o apply
and their benefitsaccrue almost
exclusively o the owner and thus eliminatesome of the free rider and spilloverproblems involved n
the classical methodsof aerial spraying against he tsetse fly and dipping of cattle for tick control
respectively.The system of fly traps and screens, used by nomadicherders in the Central African
Republic, has been demonstrated o reduce fly population o 5 to 10 percent of their original size
(Cuissance1989).
User-friendlyvaccines.Considerable rogress is being made in developinga thermostable
vaccine against Rinderpest, insteadof the present thermosensitive accine, which requires an
expensiveand difficult to managecold chain. Similarly, he developmentof a thermostablevaccine
against Newcastledisease in poultry, which can be mixed in the feed (Spradbrowand Latif 1991),
removes one of the
key constraints o village poultry productionand is now being introducedon a
national scale in SoutheastAsia. More attention till needs to be directed
to the developmentof
multivalentvaccines, which again would
significantly implify heir deliveryand reduce costs.
Conclusion
A pragmaticapproach o the organizationof veterinarydelivery services
is required. First we
need to have a clear understanding
f the economic mportanceof the disease to decide
on curative
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
12/13
-136
and
prophylacticstrategies. Second he nature
of the service required
will, to a large degree,
determinewhether
private delivery will
result in a sociallyoptimal evel of supply. Active
involvementof government n the supervision f disease
control,with private operators
carrying out
the actual
implementation, s in
many cases an attractive
alternative.Third the nature of the disease
and the profitabilityof the livestock
enterprisewill determine
whether private
delivery is economically
feasible.
The economic easibilityof
private supplywill depend
on several key factors including
whetherprofessionalor nonprofessionaltaff will be used, and to what extent economiesof scale can
be achieved.Thepromotionof producer organizations
s an option. Fourth modern
technological
developmentswill
have a significant mpacton these choices,because hey
will lower costs and
simplify he applicationof disease
control nterventions, nd
thereby increase he opportunities
or
private operators.
Endnotes
1. The exception s the diagnosis
and treatmentof infectious
diseaseswhich involve
spillovereffects
on other animals.
2. Private sector participation
will be sustainabledespite
low livestockdensities
and high per unit
costs
if high-valueanimals
(for example, dairy cows and purebred horses)
are involved. The high
value of the animalsand thus
the risk of seriouseconomic
osses providessufficient ncentives for the
livestock armer to insure
that the animals eceivethe required veterinary
services (Umali, Feder,
and
de Haan 1992).
3. The traditionalproductionsystem
is characterized y smallholder/pastoralist
armingand low
productivity for example,
less than 500 liters
of milk a year and less than 12 percent offtake),
while
the intermediateproductionsystem is typified
by more capital ntensive
operationsand higher
productivity for example, from
500 to 2,500 liters of milk
a year and 12 to 18 percent
offtake). The
high intensityproductionsystem includesfeedlots,ranching, and intensivedairy production;it is very
capital intensive with levelsof production
greater than 2,500
liters of milk a year and greater than 18
percent offtake.
4. A veterinary livestock
unit is an animal
unit introduced o aggregate he work requirements
for
animal health care of different livestock pecies;
it is equivalent o 1 cow
or 1 camel or 2 horses or
2
pigs or 2 donkeys
or 10 small ruminants
or 100fowl (de
Haan and Bekure 1991).
References
Cuissance,D. 1989. Le piegeage
de Tsetse. IEMVTetudes
et Syntheses32. Maison
Alfort.
De Haan,
C., and N. J. Nissen.
1985.
Animal Health
Services n Sub-Saharan
Africa. World Bank
TechnicalPaper 44. Washington,D.C.
-
8/18/2019 agrisym133-145
13/13
-137-
De Haan,
C., and S. Bekure. 1991.
Animal
Health Services n Sub-Saharan
frica, Initial
Experienceswith AlternativeApproaches.World
BankTechnicalPaper 134. WashingtonD.C.
FAO (Food and Agriculture
Organizationof
the United Nations). 1990. StrengtheningAnimal
Health Services in DevelopingCountries. FAO expert consultation.
Rome.
1985.
Animal Health Yearbook
1985.Rome: FAO.
ILRAD 1991.Annual Report 1990.
Nairobi, Kenya.
Leonard, D. 1985. The Supplyof
VeterinaryServices. Development
DiscussionPaper
191,
Harvard Institute for
InternationalDevelopment.Cambridge,
Mass.: Harvard University.
Spradbrow
P.B., and IbrahimLatif. 1991. Oral Newcastle
DiseaseVaccinationunder
Free Range
VillageConditions n South East Asia.
Paper presentedat Workshop
on Poultry Diseases n
Africa. Addis Abbaba.
Umali, D.L.,
G. Feder, and C. de Haan.
1992.
7he BalanceBetween
Public and Private Sector
Activitiesin the Delivery of LivestockServices.
World Bank DiscussionPaper 163.
Washington,D.C.
WinrockInternational.
(forthcoming). An Assessment
of Animal Agriculturen Sub-SaharanAfrica.
WashingtonD.C.
Wise, J.K. 1988.
Food, AnimalVeterinarians' Service,
and Product Revenues, 1985.
Journal
of
the American
VeterinaryMedicalAssociation
192: 1118-20.
