Ethiopia: Analyzing the Patterns of Herd Mobility

This article describes a study of land use and herding patterns conducted in the Borana lowlands of Ethiopia. In this study, traditional participatory techniques were combined with the use of geographic information system (GIS) and global positioning system (GPS) technologies to learn about land use and herd mobility patterns in the area.



The study technique involved several steps:

1. First, groups of elders and herders met to share information about land use and herd movements. They worked with  satellite images to indicate the spatial location of this land and herd movement formation.
2. Next, researchers and local range scouts used GPS to identify and measure "existing encampments and land use categories, such as cultivated areas and fodder banks, and rainy and dry season grazing areas."
3. Interviews were conducted with 60 heads of households to gather information on herd mobility at the household level.
4. Finally, the data were combined and traditional patterns of land use were compared to the current patterns.

The authors concluded from this research that permanent grazing had expanded and that long distance herd movements had become less frequent. They note that land use has become more restricted as once communal grazing areas are used for cropland or fenced off. As a result many households have turned to other forms of income.



The combined use of participatory methods and GIS/GPS technologies is credited with providing a spatial representation of recent changes in the area which can be drawn on as a basis for analysing land use in the region. The approach, according to the authors, "can contribute to discussions with different stakeholders in the region on future land management strategies, as well as to the integration of pastoralists into the design and implementation of appropriate land use policies."