1.4 RE IMAGINING THE FARM AND COMMUNITY FOREST STORY IN THE MEKONG (2000-2022)
I love the gentle rural communities of Cambodia and Laos who hug the mighty Mekong River. I was happy to help on technical land issues. But the “land economics “angle (land access) always haunt the technical analysis. …This somehow guided our study of farm and forestry sector concerns and capacity building approaches for concerned institutions e.g., Ministries of Agriculture and Forests) as well as local governments and NGOs in the region.
Ideas that concerned us … inspired us (2000-2022)
Both countries are blessed by the mighty Mekong River.
However, Cambodia, though flat, has inherent soil fertility issues (The exception are the areas fed by the mighty Ton Le Sap Lake). Laos has a mountainous topography and very prone to soil erosion.
Agrobiodiversity is high, (especially in Laos), Indigenous practices for soil fertility management exist; many non-government initiatives show viable ways to conserve them.
Many farming communities are naturally also forest- custodians
Climate change issues accentuate the land degradation issues.
There is deep tension between providing for access to land and community forests as economic tools for rural communities and the desire for Agri sector export output (via Economic Land Concessions or ELCs).
There seems to be steady progress in mainstreaming Community Forestry led and the increased role of local authorities
Remarkable Communities / Pioneering Communities
Communities in the flooded forests in Siem Reap Cambodia, rainfed farmers along the Mekong and in Prek Thnout, Kampong Thom, community forestry holders in Kratie and Mondulkiri;
Mountain ethnic farmers of Northern Sayaboury, Xieng Khouang, and Savanakhet, Lao PDR
Catalytic projects that helped study and model the way
IFAD – ICRAF Technical and Institutional Innovations Project,
DANIDA Process and Benefits study on NRM decentralization
UNDP SLM Cambodia Project,
Community Forestry Projects of RECOFTC; OXFAM GB; Civis Mudi; ASEAN – SDC; and NTFP EP respectively
GEF UNDP COWES Prek Thnout Watershed project
IUCN Biodiversity Planning Project, and UNDP Agri CCA project in Lao PDR,
USAID RDMA Biodiversity Review and UNDP Asia Pacific Ecosystems and Biodiversity review
My field notes
Cambodia Ton Le Sap Lake flooded village and flooded forest – Like many farmers in Asia, traditional Cambodian farmers are also at the same time fishermen and forest custodians. Seasonal farming in the Ton Le Sap Lake reflects the multiple livelihood knowledge skills. (reference from UNDP Cambodia, CNMC, TBRS and GEF)
Cambodia map showing infertile soils – Many parts of Cambodia have fertility issues. Part of our involvement was to help the Min of Agriculture develop the Sustainable land management strategy to address, this through an interdisciplinary landscape-based approach.
While working in the beautiful country of Cambodia, I bumped into this highly instructive NATGEO article. The collapse of the ancient civilization was driven in part by land degradation.
The stones of Ankor Wat are mute witness to what was once the great Empire of Ankor and its eventual decline (related to land degradation).
With national partners in Pursat after agroforestry discussion
Brief respite along the road in Xieng Khouang
LAO PDR Government and NGO partners in Vientiane discuss protocols for GEF UNDP assistance to climate change adaptation in upland and lowland agri ecosystems.
UN IFAD projects in Southeast Asia realized that there were major gaps in agroforestry knowledge between the science world and IFAD project intervention teams (Department of Agriculture and Department of Environment) in the field. The Newsletter above chronicled the various interventions that ICRAF provided (I was part of the SEA team). On hindsight, I realize that institutional capacity building (Agri and Environment Agencies) is a long term “inter-generational “process because government officers are products of compartmentalized technical education. Thus, the transformation process cannot be handled by one project alone. It may take on the minimum, three to five “back to back “ projects. One has to also invest in the school system.
In many parts of Cambodia 3 converging factors define the land management concerns (soil erosion, inherent soil fertility issues and climate change. Part of our involvement was to help the main of Agriculture develop the Sustainable land management strategy to address this through an interdisciplinary landscape based approach.
So many good agri and NRM practices have been generated through the years but the challenge is how to mainstream them. A related barrier common in ASEAN is the many impermeable “sectoral silos” in the public service system, preventing the benefit of an interdisciplinary approach.
Prek Thout watershed (diagram) – Under the Prek Thnout watershed project the local governments and community institutions would model the way for on farm and off farm actions in the upper watershed.
Luang Prabang , Xieng Khouang & Northern Sayaboury Lao PDR, Identifying agroforestry entry points in the upland towns supported by the IFAD- ICSRAF Innovations Project.
The ubiquitous Transect Walk
Burning the night oil and “Bed and Breakfast” in the cool remote village in Northern Laos
Thought leaders and fellow travelers
Meas Pyseth, SLM PTT Team, Ly Visal, Iech Thea, Chum Sovanny, Tuy Samram, Seng Vang, MAF – DALRM, Nissay, Chong Ear, MAFF Soils Team; Edwin Payuan, Paulo Pasicolan, Athena Custodio, Fred Oguis, Phuthone, Graciela
Insights
Many pockets of good land management practices now exist and can serve as models for solutions. But their spread is very slow. Given the structural impediments in rural development policy, the application of social/institutional solutions need to always accompany the spread of technical solutions for rural transformation to happen.
Agribusiness and commodity driven agriculture can contribute a lot to the GDP, but issues on land allocation, social and environmental foot prints need urgent equal attention.
“Out of the box” initiatives are increasingly needed that also engage agribusiness firms and the institutions that finance them — towards greater accountability and responsibility through transparency.
Meantime, there is a need to better manage the deep sectoral “silos’ in government policies and operations and address the overlapping issues of environmental/land degradation, economic driving forces and climate change?
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