Magnitudes and Determinants of Transaction Costs in a Group-Based Livestock Breeding Approach: The Case of Dairy Goats in Eastern Kenya

Abstract

Exotic dairy goats have increasingly become important in alleviating poverty and combating hunger and malnutrition in Kenya. Such goats were introduced in the eastern Kenyan highlands through a group-based approach about a decade ago by FARM-Africa. It is only through this approach that interested households could access imported Toggenburg bucks and other related services. However, the approach resulted in farmers incurring different magnitudes of transaction costs. This study thus assesses the magnitudes and determinants of transactions costs in a group-based breeding approach. Data was generated using 165 randomly selected farmers from the project area. Main findings were that wealth level of households and participation in credit schemes affected adoption positively and negatively respectively. The study showed that the adoption of the dairy goats was not a costless process, and those who could not afford to meet the transactions costs are likely to be left out.