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Destocking as a Drought–mitigation Strategy: Clarifying Rationales and Answering Critiques
Author(s) -
Morton John,
Barton David
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
disasters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.744
H-Index - 70
eISSN - 1467-7717
pISSN - 0361-3666
DOI - 10.1111/1467-7717.00201
Subject(s) - pastoralism , purchasing , incentive , purchasing power , currency , business , work (physics) , variety (cybernetics) , environmental planning , environmental resource management , public economics , natural resource economics , economics , geography , marketing , engineering , livestock , computer science , microeconomics , mechanical engineering , keynesian economics , monetary economics , artificial intelligence , forestry
The idea of externally assisted emergency destocking of pastoralists has gained currency in recent years: increasing the incentives for pastoralists to sell animals, or removing the constraints to selling animals in the early stages of drought. We identify two separate rationales put forward by proponents of destocking: environmental benefits and purchasing power/welfare benefits. We consider whether specific recent critiques of ‘new range ecology’ and specifically of ‘tracking policies’ do in fact provide arguments against emergency destocking in pastoralist areas. We illustrate some of these themes with a case study of a successful destocking exercise in northern Kenya where a very specific form of support was requested and received by pastoralists themselves. The sorts of destocking that work are likely to have significant effects on pastoralist purchasing power at key points of the drought cycle, but minimal effects on the environment. Clarifying these points will make it easier to promote destocking as a drought–mitigation policy.