Some aspects of draught buffaloes in Vietnam

Abstract

Attention is particularly paid to draught buffalo development in Vietnam in two main agro-ecological zones, the Red River delta and the Mekong delta. The average annual growth rate of the buffalo population is 2.4 %. Indigenous tillers and imported tractors operate limitedly due to rather complex natural conditions; whereas draught buffalo nutrition faces the lack of green forage in high-yield rice areas. Strategy for agricultural mechanization in Vietnam will be based on the harmonious coordination between draught animal power and machinery. Though results on draught buffalo research are insufficient, the outlet of draught buffalo development is tending towards a crossbreeding programme simultaneously with the improvement of ricestraw quality, in order to upgrade the quantitative and the qualitative aspects of draught buffaloes.