Impact assessment on sustainable endoparasite control for small ruminants: terminal report

One of the projects supported by the Australian Center for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) in the Philippines is the Sustainable Endoparasite Control (SPC) for Small Ruminants. The project aimed to develop, test and implement strategies for sustainable endoparasite control, identify endoparasite-resistant goat breeds/genotypes and assess the contribution of these resistant genotypes to SPC. The SPC project was able to develop a number of important technologies for sustainable control of endoparasite in goat. From this on-station project, an indication of the breeds that have better resistance to internal parasites was generated. Likewise, best options on grazing management, strategic nutritional supplementation and smarter chemical worm control methods were identified. Succeeding projects on goat supported by other funding agencies such as IFAD and ADB capitalized on the earlier achievements of the SPC project. They packaged the technologies/information into baskets of technology options on goat worm control and allowed farmers to mix and match technology components from the different baskets. Overtime, the farmers were able to develop their own farmer baskets of workable technologies not just on worm control but on integrated goat management. To date, at least 3,000 goat raisers adopted the technologies developed from the earlier ACIAR supported SPC project. The general objective of this research project was to assess the impact of the ACIAR supported SPC project in the Philippines. The specific objectives were to: a) describe the process and dynamics involved in the conceptualization, formulation, evaluation and implementation of the SPC project through retrospective process documentation, b) determine the inputs, outputs, outcomes, impacts and benefits from the project, c) describe and analyze the impact pathway by identifying project results and causal links and mapping inputs to project benefits, d) estimate the social returns from the project investment, e) to derive insights on the effectiveness of the ACIAR guidelines in relation to the traditional impact assessment procedures, f) come up with issues and lessons learned, and g) formulate specific policy recommendations to aid government in its policies and future directions and to help improve current situation. The approach to impact assessment as detailed in the guidelines recently completed by the ACIAR was employed in the program. The ACIAR impact assessment guidelines employed the input-output-outcome-impact framework. Inputs were translated to project outputs through a certain process and the outputs eventually translated to outcome and impact. The approach made use of benefit-cost analysis (BCA) together with adoption studies. The project made use of secondary and primary data. A survey was conducted in selected municipalities and provinces within Region 1 [Ilocos Region], 7 [Central Visayas], and 10 [Northern Mindanao], using questionnaires. Survey sites include selected municipalities in Pangasinan, La Union, Ilocos Sur, Cebu, and Bukidnon. Also, key informant interviews of key persons with the provincial veterinarians, municipal agriculture officers (MAOs)/ agricultural technicians (ATs), and goat traders/retailers in the areas were also conducted to generate other important information.