Abstract:
This study determined the effect of livestock ownership on household poverty
in Northern, Upper East and Upper West Regions of Ghana. Specifically, the
study determined the effects of medium-sized and large-sized ownership of
livestock on household poverty and examined the effect of type of livestock
(cattle, sheep and poultry) ownership on household poverty together with the
joint effect between size and type of livestock ownership on household poverty.
Employing the Ordinary Least Squares (OLS) estimation technique, the study
found that medium-sized and large-sized livestock ownership reduces
household poverty through improvement in consumption expenditures. Results
on types of livestock owned revealed that livestock such as cattle and poultry
significantly reduce household’s poverty. As to the joint effect, the study
revealed that owning large-sized livestock (being cattle) more significantly
reduces household poverty than owning large-sized livestock other than cattle.
Moreover, owning medium-sized livestock (being sheep) likewise more
significantly reduces household poverty level than owning medium-sized
livestock other than sheep. It is therefore recommended that all poor households,
especially households in the Upper West Region focus on cattle and poultry
rearing in an attempt to reduce their poverty levels. Also, poor households in
Upper East and Northern Regions should focus on the production of cattle and
sheep respectively.
