Improving the production and marketing of livestock kept by smallholder farmers in Africa has the potential to be a route out of poverty for millions of families. However, farmers' ability to improve livestock production is constrained by access to key services such as veterinary and breeding services. FARM-Africa has pioneered an approach to establishing dairy goat enterprises on small farms that places all key services in the hands of farmers and the private sector. An example of this approach implemented in a project in Kenya is described. The approach has been extremely successful and is already spreading across East Africa. Total milk production and incomes increased 10-fold within five years. Farmers are starting to sell fresh milk to supermarkets in Nairobi. With greater investment, the model could reach many more families. FARM-Africa is planning to expand the breeding and animal healthcare model through a franchising business model.
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Peacock et al. (2011) studied this question.