Abstract:
The southern rangelands (Annex 1) account for 7.6-12.3% of total land area of Ethiopia.15 The
region until few decades ago was considered as the finest grazing lands in East Africa-16 The
human population is dominated by the Booran who are mainly pastoralists. The Booran model of
range management is robust and optimal.17 The rangelands are marked by high rainfall variability.
Rainfall is bimodal with the long (gaana) rains expected between March - May > m and thej oshort rains
{hagaya) between October and November. The short hagaya rains are unreliable. Variable
rainfall results in greater variability in forage productivity. Seasonal distribution of rainfall more
than annual rainfall iota] influences range producuvity. Years of high rainfall produce .surplus
forage, while below average years produce deficits.19 The Booran use forage surpluses by
maintaining high stocking rates. Livestock losses are expected during years of below average when
forage productivity declines.
Drought is recurrent, affecting all grazing lands or occurring in localised areas. During this century
droughts were recorded during 1914 - 1915. 1918 - 1919. 1928 - 1929. 1933 - 1934. 1938 - 1939.
1943^- 1945, 1958 - 1959, 1960- 1961. 1964- 1965. 1970- 1973, 1975 - 1976, 1979- 1980. 1983
- 1984 and 1991 - !992:n.
The indigenous system of land use is appropriate to cope with rainfall variability. Response is
through opportunistic movements within and across geographically distributed grazing units called
Dedha. The residents of each dedha depend on common water sources called mada. ~! The
indigenous range management includes semi-sedentary camps where the elderly, children, women
and milch herds are maintained. The surplus herds composed of males, non-milking females,
pregnant animals and the young, join the mobile foora-herd management. The grazing lands
surrounding the serru-sedentary encampments are used by the milch (waara i herds, while the
foora-herd management system uses the remote grazing lands. Overgrazing is reduced by using the
grazing lands in rotation during the wet and the dry seasons" Grazing of the wet season rangelands
depend on temporary water sources in natural pools and human-made ponds. The herds go onto the
dry season pastures of the well complexes when thejemporary water sources are exhausted, but
before grazing resources are overused.