[Impact of the microfinance in improving the performance of Awassi sheep of smallholders in the region of Jabal al-Hoss – Aleppo]

The study was conducted during 2012-2013 to determine the impact of the microfinance program of the Rural Community Development Project in improving the performance of Awassi sheep of smallholders in the region of Jabal al-Hoss – Aleppo. 215 of Awassi sheep breeders who had benefited at least twice during 2007 and 2010 from the microfinance Sanduqe and 56 of non beneficiary –breeders (control sample) were selected randomly basing on database available in the project. Information regarding social, educational and animal production descriptive status was collected on the ground (personal interview) by a questionnaire prepared for this purpose and on the desktop official institutions. Excel soft program was used to tab data. Descriptive and quantitative obtained data were subjected to the general linear model (GLM) and tested to assess variation among productive traits. Analysis of variance was also used to determine the effect of body weights and the type of birth on milk production, and the T- test was used to compare bilateral studied trait means (pre- and post- loan), and correlation coefficients between the affecting factors, milk production and body weights were determined using SPSS Ver.18 program. Results showed about 90% of respondents were married, the percentage of beneficial women 40%, the average age of the beneficial group 40 years, the percentage of learners 57% and the spread of illiteracy was more among women. The microfinance provided job opportunities for the local communities and helped in the development of Awassi sheep by owning 26% of respondents assets of the profession, basically in the agricultural settlement of zone III, followed by zone IV and then by zone II, and it was found that 43% of the beneficiaries ranged their flock size between 11 and 25 heads. Results also showed that gaining the professional experience of breeding sheep was primarily inherited but extension activities had helped significantly in improving the performance of flocks, resorted 33.5% of them to borrow from the project as the first action to relieve sheep raising and management to face dryness, and not to reduce the size of the flocks and the mitigation of the phenomenon of migration as a request peregrination for pasture. It was also found that inability of 46% of the beneficial breeders to provide the feed requirements of their flocks and 23% of them informed insufficiency of loans, 11% of them expressed poor marketing services and 2% indicated that Murabaha on loans was high. 46% of the beneficial breeders paid premiums due from financial benefits to invest the loan in a timely manner. Statistical analysis indicated that the benefit from the loans helped significantly (P 0.05) to increase the twining rate and reduce mortality rate and incidence of abortion in flocks of beneficiaries, but did not significantly affect the length of suckling period and the weight of lambs at birth and during the subsequent stages of growth. With an average of suckling period 60±0.68 versus to 58.9 ± 0.75 days, and the number of twins 0.32±0.05 versus to 0.54± 0.06, and birth weight 2.56 ± 0.04 versus to 2.86± 0.04kg, weaning weight 20.23±0.22, versus to 20.9± 0.2 kg and the mortality rate 0.30 ±0.06 versus to 0.02 ± 0.06, and weight at marketing 39.3± 0.3 versus to 40.8 ±0.4 kg in breeder flocks before loan availing and after, respectively, and the incidence of disease among flocks of beneficiaries (48% ) was higher than at non-beneficiaries (25%), However, the finance has contributed significantly in reducing the average total cost of the disease in flocks of bene-ficiaries (3371.6 ± 889 S.p ver. 3631.5 ±533.9 S.p in flocks of non-beneficiaries ) and contributed to increase the herd size by about 36.8%, and in the level of access to veterinary services by about 21%, and in coverage the daily consumption estimated at 12.6 % and an increase in labor running at about 4.5%. Contributed funding in financial and non-financial services helped to improve the average milk productivity of beneficial flocks by about 20.5 kg / season / head which reflected a positive and significant income of beneficiaries (39380 ± 4868.11. S.p), compared with the income of non-beneficiaries (31723 ± 14576. S.p). The microfinance services contributed morally to add some improvements to the productive activities: such as discharging of products into new local markets with 18% of the beneficiaries, and the arrival of about 7% to the market, and get 21% of veterinary care services of the project, and that 27% expand the size of the investment. It was concluded that the rural microfinance targeting the poor who are unable to access to formal financial institutions contributed to the increase in the size of sheep flock per breeder and improve the performance of productive and reproductive performance and improved the living conditions of smallholders, especially women, through the financial services and non-financial assistance from the Sanadiq in addition to effective follow-up by technical personnel.