An innovative initiative aims to equip rural communities with the skills to rear and milk buffalo as a way to make extra income, while combating the rising issue of child malnutrition

KAMPONG THOM – It’s about 6am and as the day starts to break, villagers can be seen walking cows and buffalos along a road. They lead female cattle from a shelter and herd them into small bamboo cages, each only big enough for one to fit inside.

A middle-aged man wearing white and grey striped T-shirt sits next to a cage inside the yard of his home. Next to him is a small blue plastic and metal container, with two metal plates, a yellow towel, soap and a bottle of water to wash the buffalo’s breast before he starts to milk it.

After he cleans the buffalo’s breast with soap and rinses it with water, his wife, wearing a red long-sleeved shirt walks towards him and takes his place next to the buffalo.

This daily routine forms part of a buffalo milking project, aimed at providing nutritious food for children and boosting the livelihoods of local farmers. It is run by the Multisectoral Food and Nutrition Security (GIZ-MUSEFO) initiative, which is trying to tackle malnutrition rates in Cambodia.