184 THE FUTURE OF ARID LANDS 
the lands bordering the Arabian Desert, and the graziers of the 
semi-arid lands of Baluchistan and Rajasthan. 
The measures being adopted in Algeria under the Secteurs 
d’Amélioration Rurale are probably more realistic under present 
conditions and might with advantage be extended to many other 
parts of the region. The centers set up by this organization provide 
specialized advice and attention to animal health; breeding flocks 
are maintained from which the shepherding community can ob- 
tain improved rams to replace the low-quality ones in their own 
flocks. Reserves of fodder are built up at these centers from crops 
grown locally or imported from other parts of the country more 
favorable for crop production. Through a system of insurance at 
so much per sheep per year, the livestock owners may draw upon 
these reserves and so avoid the catastrophic losses which occur in 
years of extreme drought. In the severe winter of 1953-54, losses 
among flocks not associated with these centers amounted to up 
to 40% of adult sheep and 80% of the lambs, whereas losses 
where such centers existed were not more than 15% for the pri- 
vate owners and 3% for the flocks belonging to the centers. 
Such measures, combined with appropriate facilities for market- 
ing and distribution of the produce, can be of permanent value 
only if livestock owners realize the necessity of maintaining the 
same or even a lower number of livestock of improved quality than 
before. They should not attempt to keep even greater numbers of 
livestock because of the greater security which these centers and 
fodder reserves provide. The whole program would in such a case 
defeat its own ends and the destruction of the vegetative cover 
would proceed even more rapidly. 
Better Use of Water 
There are, in the regions under consideration, possibilities for 
the development and better utilization of water resources. Where 
these exist in regions primarily devoted to livestock husbandry, 
it would obviously be desirable to utilize some or most of the 
water for the cultivation of fodder crops and for the provision of 
stock watering points. The fodder so produced might be used to 
build up reserves for desert flocks or might be the basis of a more 
