This study was conducted to map and describe the smallholder livestock production and marketing systems in Woliata and Dawuro districts of southern Ethiopia using agro-ecologic and environmental variables. The study was aimed at generating basic information for designing interventions that improve livestock productivity and rural livelihoods. Data were generated through group discussion, household survey and repaid market appraisal tools. The districts were clustered into highland, midland and lowland agro-ecologies and representative sites were selected purposively. Total household of 117 in Woliata and 117 in Dawuro district were randomly selected to participate in the household survey conducted between October 2007 to September 2008. Household survey data was analyzed using SPSS.

Characteristics of management practices and marketing, socio-economic features of the households, constraints encounter and intervention areas were similar across agro-ecologies of both districts. Livestock husbandry practice is predominantly backwarded and subsistence with low productivity per head of animals and low use of inputs and improved technologies in both districts. Highland agro-ecologies of both districts are densely populated with scarce grazing lands and livestock highly suffer from inadequate supply and poor quality feed during most parts of the year. Livestock and livelihood of the lowland areas are critically affected by drought, warm climate and high prevalence of diseases and parasites. Midland areas lie between the other two and confess a moderate challenge of both feed shortage and diseases and parasites losses. Strengthening institutions mandated to deliver appropriate input and technology, education, credit, incentive market to smallholder farmers with due consideration of the agro-ecologic variable and natural environments could improve livestock and livelihood of the smallholder in crop-livestock mixed farming systems of Woliata and Dawuro districts, southern Ethiopia.