Livestock production in arid and semi-arid areas is an important source of household food and income. Selling or buying of livestock and their products is important among pastoral communities who derive their source of livelihoods from livestock production. This study sought to determine factors that influence the initial decision of pastoral communities to participate in livestock markets and the extent or level of participation in livestock markets. Semi-structured questionnaires were used to collect data from pastoralists through face-to-face interview. The data were analysed using descriptive statistics and Heckman two-stage selection model that allows for determination of the discrete probability of participation and the extent of participation. The results show that most households participated in the livestock markets as sellers rather than buyers with herd recruitment and restocking for market participants being mainly through birth, borrowing or loaning female cows from friends. The number of livestock sold or bought by pastoralists at any given market price was significantly affected by the non-price constraints such as distance to the market, group marketing, age and education level. The decision of whether to participate and the level of market participation were significantly determined by pastoralists attaining and maintaining sufficiently large herd sizes and hence become willing to liquidate animals through the market. Sole emphasis on livestock marketing may not significantly manage risks unless there is proper understanding of pastoral long-term incentives to keep livestock. Therefore, developing livestock markets in pastoral areas should be along with investment on rangeland rehabilitation that enables reciprocal access of resources which allows them to maximize herd sizes.

中文翻译：

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肯尼亚塔纳河县牧民社区牲畜市场参与的决定因素

干旱和半干旱地区的畜牧生产是家庭食物和收入的重要来源。在以畜牧业生产为生的牧区社区中，出售或购买牲畜及其产品很重要。本研究旨在确定影响牧区社区参与牲畜市场的初步决定以及参与牲畜市场的程度或水平的因素。使用半结构化问卷通过面对面访谈收集牧民的数据。使用描述性统计和 Heckman 两阶段选择模型对数据进行分析，该模型允许确定参与的离散概率和参与程度。结果表明，大多数家庭以卖方而不是买方的身份参与牲畜市场，市场参与者的牛群招募和补充主要通过生育、向朋友借或借母牛的方式进行。牧民以任何给定市场价格出售或购买的牲畜数量受到非价格限制因素的显着影响，例如与市场的距离、群体营销、年龄和教育水平。是否参与的决定和市场参与程度很大程度上取决于牧民是否获得并保持足够大的畜群规模，从而愿意通过市场清算牲畜。除非对饲养牲畜的牧区长期激励措施有适当的了解，否则仅强调牲畜营销可能不会显着管理风险。