One day in May 2002, Haji Adrus went to his fields near his
house, in the Indonesian village Parado Wane, on Sumbawa
Island, where he had planted hundreds of young fruit trees at the
onset of the rains about five months earlier. To his shock, the
54 year-old farmer learned that more than 60 percent of his
young fruit trees had been completely destroyed overnight by
goats that had entered his field. All efforts by his family to
intensify and develop a more permanent agricultural system,
by introducing fruit trees on the farm land, had been in vain.
Goats are an important asset for people on Sumbawa. They
contribute to local livelihoods in the form of food, especially at
the time of religious festivities, and also in the form of cash
savings. In Sumbawa’s dryland areas, goats are the most
suitable livestock species for the landless and small farmers
who cannot maintain larger ruminants like cows. When Haji
Adrus was a young man, goats were already important and kept
by most families. In those days, goats were allowed to browse
freely in the still plentiful bushland surrounding the village.
But these days, due to a rapid increase in the local population,
such feeding grounds for goats have become scarce. And the
remaining bushland has suffered under the enormous increase
in the number of goats. Now, most goats roam around during
daylight while looking for something edible in and immediately
around the village. Goats also attempt to break through the
fences around farmer’s fields, causing havoc when feed sources
are in short supply in the dry season.
Discussing the new situation
Haji Adrus is the chairman of one of the farmer groups in his
village. Since 2001, this group has been working on developing
sustainable agricultural practices in their fields. Planting fruit
trees was one of the project activities which Haji Adrus had
started. He and his fellow group members wanted to increase
the sources of cash income from their farms. By planting a
considerable amount of different fruit trees, an extra income
could be expected after 3-4 years, while fruit trees do not
emand a lot of extra care or costs after the first investment of
obtaining seedlings and planting. This investment by Haji
Adrus’ family was now almost completely lost by free roaming
goats. And the members of the farmer group all agreed that any
of them could be the next victim of greedy goats, if nothing was
done now. Within the group the issue of goat keeping was
discussed and some alternative approaches for goat husbandry
were suggested. During one of the next village meetings the
conflict between goat keeping and crop production was brought
up and suggestions were made to the village chief and other
villagers about how the system could be improved.
Designing village by-laws
According to customary rules in Parado Wane, people can be
held responsible for damage caused to others. It is, however, a
tricky issue when the damage is caused by goats. How do you
prove which goat or goats caused the damage, and therefore
which goat owner should be held responsible? Everyone present
in the village meeting agreed that goat keeping could not be
banned since goats are a very important resource to families in
the village. Therefore, it was felt that it was not just a matter of
discussing a proper control system and how to carry out
punishments in case of damage caused by goats. The villagers
realized that it was more about changing the old practice in
such a way that both crop production and goat rearing could be
possible in the village, and in a harmonious way. It was
suggested that both goat owners as well as owners of
agricultural fields should make it more difficult for goats to
enter other people’s property. If that could be achieved, proper
agreements could be made on how to deal with cases of serious
damage caused by goats.
New situation
Today, almost all goats in Parado Wane carry a triangle made
from wood or bamboo around their neck. This simple device
stops the animals from getting through fences, while it also
provides an opportunity for labelling the animals. At the same
time, more and better fencing with different shrub species,
including gamal (Gliricidia sepium) which is planted densely
from long woody cuttings, is practised by farmers. Similarly,
young trees of very palatable species get extra protection during
the first years with a cordon of stakes around them.
This is the result of a village by-law on free roaming goats,
established in 2003 in Parado Wane as well as in neighbouring
Parado Rato. It states that goat owners are held responsible for
damage caused by their animals in all cases where proper
fencing is present; in such cases, damages have to be fully
compensated or the animals in question – which can all be
identified by their tags – becomes the property of the farmer
who suffered the damage. This tough regulation is one of the
reasons why all members of Haji Adrus’ farmer group now keep
their goats in a proper enclosure on their compounds during the
cropping season, and feed their small livestock with gamal,
bunut grass (Saccharum sp.), maize or coconut flour. This
practice also allows them to collect goat droppings and make
good use of them as manure in their fields.
Peni Agustiyanto. Programme Officer, VECO Indonesia, Jalan Letda Kajeng 22,
80233 Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia.