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Cattle Artificial Insemination in Developing Countries: The Case of Tanzania

Modest Diamond Varisanga*

Artificial Insemination (AI) is the directly manual placement of an appropriate quantity of good quality semen in the reproductive tract of the female (preferably between 4–16 hours after the onset of standing estrus) through means other than copulation or natural mating. AI is frankly considered as the oldest and most widely used Assisted Reproductive Technology (ART) applied in livestock production since it allows better utilization of sires, reduces the hazards and costs of keeping males, as well as allowing the utilization of multiple sires. The importance of AI for the genetic improvement of the cattle is unquestionable since the technology is considered as an important component of an overall strategy to improve the profitability and sustainability of dairy cattle operations as well as to improve the livelihood of small-scale dairy farmers. However, after over 80 years of the commercial application of this technology in the cow, these technologies have had low adoption rates in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) as well as in other regions of the world particularly in the developing countries. This paper reviews the pertinent factors that should be considered in the establishment and efficient operationalization of artificial insemination in developing countries like Tanzania.