The nomads of Ilam and the hard bastion of red meat production; A pillar that needs support

Ilam - The nomads of Ilam, producing more than 60% of the province's red meat, are the backbone of food security and rural economy, a pillar that needs support today due to the problems of drought and the high cost of inputs.

Ambassador Arjan - Group of Provinces: Animal husbandry in Ilam province is not only an economic activity, but it is considered the main pillar of livelihood of many rural and nomadic households and plays an important role in providing food security, creating employment and economic prosperity of the region.

This sector, relying on wide pastures, light and heavy livestock and hardworking human force, has been driving the economy of many rural areas of the province for years and is known as one of the serious advantages of Ilam in the field of production.

However, the livestock farmers of the province have faced many challenges in recent years, including drought and lack of fodder, increase in the price of inputs, the spread of livestock diseases, and the attack of wild animals on livestock, and these problems have made it difficult for them to continue their activities.

This is despite the fact that many ranchers, especially the nomads of Kuchero, operate with limited capital and without proper insurance support, and any accident or damage can cause them to face heavy and irreparable losses.

Based on this, comprehensive support for this hardworking class, through strengthening veterinary services, developing livestock insurance, providing cheap inputs and compensating for losses caused by natural disasters, has become one of the serious needs in the province's rural economy.

Supporting the livelihood of nomadic pastoralists

Director General of Nomadic Affairs of Ilam Province, in a conversation with Mehr reporter, referring to the situation of nomadic herdsmen, said: Nomadic herdsmen of the province, relying on light and heavy livestock and traditional breeding methods, play an important role in providing red meat needed by the market.

Farshad Yasmi added: In recent years, this working group has faced problems such as lack of inputs, weak technical services and difficulty in selling products. In such a way that today, solving these problems has become one of the serious necessities in the field of rural and nomadic economy of the province.

Referring to the support programs of this general administration, Yasmi clarified: The development of red meat production is one of the important axes of our plans, and in this regard, the increase in meat production by the nomadic community of the province has been targeted.

He pointed out that this program aims to support production, strengthen the economy of nomadic households and help ensure food security, and to realize it, a series of measures in the field of inputs, technical and veterinary services, livestock productivity and the production and supply chain have been planned.

Director General of Nomadic Affairs of Ilam Province, referring to the measures taken, added: providing the inputs needed by nomadic livestock farmers, providing technical and consulting services to improve livestock productivity, coordinating with veterinarians for vaccination and prevention of livestock diseases, are among the programs that are being followed in order to achieve this goal.

Yasmi emphasized: We are trying to provide a better sales environment for nomadic products by organizing the production and supply chain, so that nomadic herders can continue to produce with more confidence and enjoy a stable income.

64% jump in facilities for production pioneers

Director General of Nomadic Affairs of Ilam Province, referring to the irreplaceable contribution of this group in the field of national production, said: The nomadic community of Ilam, with 9,800 households and a population of more than 60,000 people, is a full-fledged symbol of resistance economy. This productive community owns more than 1.35 million livestock, owns 70% of light livestock and produces more than 60% (8-9 thousand tons) of red meat in the province, and the economic value of their livestock production is an unprecedented figure.

Explaining the unprecedented credit package of this year, he announced: With the government's special attention to the livelihood of the nomads and the stability of the production stronghold, in 1405, a total of one thousand and 451 billion Rials of facilities and support credits were allocated to the nomads of the province. This figure compared to the credit of 884 billion rials in 1404, represents a significant growth of more than 64%.

Regarding the challenges faced by nomadic herders, Yasmi noted: Our nomads have been struggling with the violence of nature, drought, lack of water and poor pastures for years. In a situation where the costs of fodder and inputs have increased, the injection of working capital for fattening prevents the early slaughter of productive livestock and raw sales.

He said: This facility allows the nomads to confidently fatten their herds and offer the final product with high added value.

The Director General of Elam Nomad Affairs in explaining the strategic approach of this General Department stated: the survival of production depends on the modernization of methods; Therefore, our basic policy is to move purposefully towards semi-mechanized animal husbandry, participate in light livestock breeding programs, improve universal livestock insurance coverage, and expand coordination with the veterinary organization to prevent diseases. We are also trying to eliminate middlemen and organize the supply chain and direct sale of meat and dairy products, so that the real profits of the production will return directly to the table of the zealous nomads.

The head of the Agricultural Jihad Organization of Ilam province said in a conversation with Mehr reporter: Ilam province is one of the country's strategic poles in the production of animal protein, with more than 2.4 million light and heavy livestock and suitable mountain pastures.

Alireza Toulabi added: nearly 27,000 tons of red meat are produced in this province every year, while the province's annual consumption is around 7,000 to 8,000 tons. This means that Ilam has a trans-regional role in providing the food basket of the capital and other provinces and provides the country with a significant export capacity in the western borders.

Emphasizing the necessity of transitioning from traditional animal husbandry to economic and knowledge-based models, he added: "In order to sustain production in the face of drought stress and expensive inputs, our strategy is to increase productivity in the province's animal husbandry sector."

Toulabi stated: In this framework, we have seriously put the pilot and practical projects of light livestock breeding on the agenda, the concrete example of which is being implemented in Abdanan city on 200 head of livestock.

He continued: The aim of these projects is to optimize nutrition, synchronize, increase the fertility rate and promote multiple births so that our rancher can have higher productivity and economic profitability with fewer livestock.

The head of the Ilam Agricultural Jihad Organization considered the basic empowerment of rural communities to be complementary to these plans and said: reforming livestock farming methods is not limited to large livestock farms; The education of rural women as the main managers of the household economy is of vital importance.

He clarified: holding sheep and goat breeding skill courses like the recent one in Saman village of Helilan city shows our determination to transfer the knowledge of animal health, prevention of common diseases, milk health and scientific management to the most remote production centers.

In the end, Toulabi emphasized: The comprehensive approach of the Ilam Agricultural Jihad Organization is a combination of targeted distribution of livestock inputs, support for 603 industrial fattening units of lamb and calves in the province, completion of the value chain and dispatch of experts and promoters to farms and ranches so that no knot is left in the path of leaping production and the livelihood of the hardworking people of this field.

Livestock farming in Ilam, despite its key role in the livelihood of villagers and nomads, faces challenges such as drought, high input costs, and damage to wildlife; Therefore, all-round support for livestock farmers will be the basis for the stability of this sector and the strengthening of the rural economy of the province.