Evaluation of Water Access for Livestock Index in Range Lands of Semi- Arid Areas of Monduli District, Arusha Region, Tanzania

Abstract

Various frameworks with different indicators are employed to evaluate water access in households and communities. However, approaches specifically designed for determining water access for livestock by pastoralist households in semi-arid areas are limited. The study was conducted in Monduli District, Tanzania. The objective of the study was to establish the levels of water access for livestock by pastoralist households in rangelands of semi-arid areas. Through a household survey, a semi-structured questionnaire was administered to 367 households in seven villages. Data were analysed by using frequencies and counts. In addition, multinomial logit latent class regression models were used to determine the levels of water access for livestock by household. The study found four sources of water access for livestock; namely the leading class of high access of water with low quality 31.4%, followed by the low level of water access with multiple use 26.43%. The lowest level is the category of high access, but less affordable with multiple use 24.5% and 17.7% low access with high quality of water for livestock. The study further showed that Makuyuni ward had higher water access than Moita. The study recommends construction of both improved and unimproved water sources for livestock such as boreholes and charco dams through collaboration between the community and Monduli District Council.