Livestock Diversification for Improved Resilience and Welfare Outcomes Under Climate Risks in Kenya

The study contributes to the emerging literature on livestock composition and resilience by applying two waves of a panel dataset of 360 rural households in Kenya. The paper investigates the role of livestock diversification in managing risks and improving household well-being outcomes in the context of climate risks and multiple shocks. One major result is that climatic shocks do not affect small ruminant and non-ruminant animals because they are more resilient to climate variability than cattle. Subsequently, households rely on diversified livestock portfolios and borrow from social groups to smooth their consumption level and foster resilience. The latter coping strategy is predominantly preferred by female-headed and asset-poor households to protect their already low asset base. Small ruminants, poultry and cattle contribute significantly to household’s income and food consumption across different quintiles. Small ruminants improve income and consumption for households in the bottom of quintiles. The policy implication of these findings is that diversification of livestock portfolios is germane in fostering resilience to climate risks and thus improve the well-being outcomes of livestock farmers.