Invasion of prosopis juliflora (SW.) DC and Rural Livelihoods the case of Afar Pastoralists at Middle Awash Area of Ethiopia.

The invasion of P. juliflora made livestock rearing difficult; which ultimatly affects the Afaw pastoral livelihoods.Despite this fact, research in the areas is scanty. And hence astudy was conducted to investigate the effect of P. juliflora invasion on grazing lands, livestock rearing and afat pastoral livelihoods in Middle Awash area in the year 2007. Group discussion and questionare survey of tatally 142 households in 6 villages were used for data collection. The result showed that 74% of the respondents knew the bush for the past twenty years; and 84% fo the total surveyed huselholds rated it as undesirable for the community.However, abundance driven utilization of the bush was found on fuelwood,for fencing homesteads and barn consturction.A quarter of the surveyed households used mesquite as means of income.Age of househod to use mesquite as source of income.P. juliflora was blamed to inhibit mobiligy by invading 1/2 to 2/3 of grazing lands, occupying settlement areas and blocking paths.The invasion interferred with pastoral tradition and institutions (84% of respondents) and the thorn was accused for being poisonous both for the people and their livestock.The invasion further undermined nultipurpose trees/bushes, grass aviliability and under canopy growth. Acacia nilotica, A. senegal, A tortilis, Andropogon conaliculatus, Candaba rotundifolia, Chrysopogon plumulosus, Cymbopogon posipischilii, Eragrostis cylindriflore, Salvadora persica and Terapogon cenchriformis are the most affected plant species by the invasion.All these factors affected the livestock assets and productivity fo the basin causing 80% livestock loss as compared to ten years ago and more than 85% perceived milk yield reduction. Each household lost 6.5 small stock and 7 cattle due to health hazards caused by p. juliflora pod.As a result household engaged in to crop cultivation, share cropping, formal employtment, causual labor and small trade as risk managemnt strategies.Age of household head, level of education, change in livestock asset and perceived size of graing land invasion are significant variables to affect househld dicision towards using the strategies.Thus, the invasion has affected the livestock assets of the basin which in turn increases ecological vulnerabitiy of the pastoralist in that fragile ecosystem.