In Panyijiar County, South Sudan, Napier grass is not only an important source of feed during the dry season, but it also improves the health of livestock all year round. Mrs Nyibol Wicjang Koak’s story highlights the importance of the Napier grass and of the training she received. By feeding her livestock with Napier grass, she can reduce the expenses of buying drugs and increase the milk production on which her children’s health and growth depend.
In a three-month project funded by the German Federal Foreign Office and Welthungerhilfe (WHH), VSF-Suisse supported vulnerable households in the Panyijiar district of South Sudan by organising livestock markets, carrying out treatments and deworming, as well as managing natural resources through sustainable fodder production.
Nyibol Wicjang Koak, 34 years old, was one of the project participants. She is a mother of six and four of her children are in primary school. Her husband, John Chuol Kuich, is an epidemiology technician at the Nyal Primary Health Care Centre. As part of the project, Nyibol received Napier grass stalks. She planted them after receiving training on fodder production and how to plant them. Her garden is near a swamp, which makes things easier as it irrigates the plants directly from the swamp during the dry season.
“I gained more knowledge and experiences in farming from my husband who always encourages me to work with him. The training I got from VSF-Suisse about Napier grass planting also helped me a lot. Now our livestock have the Napier grass that they eat during the dry season when there is a scarcity of pasture. We also plant crops like maize, cowpea, okra, tomatoes, eggplant, amarantha and kudra” , said Nyibol.
Before last year’s floods, Nyibol and her family had over fifty cattle and fifteen goats. They lost most of them due to the negative impact of flooding, such as diseases and food shortage. Now nine cows and ten goats remain, and they are fed with Napier grass as a supplement.
When Nyibol and many members of the community saw the Napier grass for the first time, they thought it was sugar cane. They got curious and planted them. In the end, many of them could harvest the Napier grass for their livestock. Nyibol explained, “ Over time, I no longer simply gave the others the grass but rather shared with them the stalks and taught them how to plant it.”
According to Nyibol, feeding her livestock on Napier grass has improved its health. This reduced the expenses of buying medication and increased the milk production on which her children’s health and growth depend. The main challenge she faced was that most of the Napier grass was destroyed by the cows and goats after germination due to poor fencing. Realizing the importance of grass, she fixed the issue. She concluded with another advantage of the Napier grass: “It doesn’t require a large area as it grows upwards!”
Rose Juru
MEAL & Gender
Officer
South Sudan
Patrick Lino
Project Officer – Livestock
South Sudan
