Villagers receiving food donation from samaritans. Thomas Keusters, WFP Director in Cambodia, said that he did not hear about the food shortage in Kampong Speu yet, but promised an investigation to look into this issue. Kampong Speu suffered food shortage from lack of rainfall and also from incompetency and neglect from CPP government officials such as Nhim Vanda, first vice president at the National Committee for Disaster Management. (Photo RFA)Thursday, March 30, 2006
By Lor Chandara
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
Despite reports from the Ministry of Agriculture that this year's rice harvest has increased 41 percent over 2005, a Kompong Speu official said Tuesday that more than 1,000 families in the province have run out of rice.
Kang Heang, deputy Kompong Speu governor, said 1,300 families throughout the province, the size of which he estimated averaged five members each, have no rice.
Although he said they are not immediately in danger of starvation, as they have fruit and vegetables to eat and are able to borrow money, he called on the World Food Program to distribute rice for work.
"We need about 1,000 tons of rice to be distributed to needy farmers in exchange for their labor digging irrigation canals and community ponds," he said, adding that that the affected families lived in districts including Baset, Kong Pisei and Phnom Sruoch.
Despite positive results for the country as a whole, some Kompong Speu farmers reaped little rice in the last harvest due to poor rainfall he said.
Agriculture Minister Chan Sarun told his ministry's annual conference in Chaktomuk Theater on Wednesday that the yield from the last rainy and dry season rice harvests amounted to 5.9 million tons.
The amount is a significant rise over last year's figure, 4.17 million tons, and also over the 5-million-ton harvest the ministry projected for 2006 in November.
Nhim Vanda, first vice president at the National Committee for Disaster Management said mat details of food shortages remain unclear, but that some villagers in Kompong Speu, Prey Veng, Kandal, Svay Rieng and Pursat provinces could be wanting for food.
He added that the reported shortage in Kompong Speu was not a major concern for his committee.
Nhim Vanda met on Tuesday with WFP Country Director Thomas Keusters to discuss methods of assessing Cambodians' need for food in emergencies but they did not discuss the situation in Kompong Speu, Keusters said.
Keusters added that he was unaware of any current food shortage and was surprised by the reports.
"Obviously this has to be investigated," he said.
Kang Heang, deputy Kompong Speu governor, said 1,300 families throughout the province, the size of which he estimated averaged five members each, have no rice.
Although he said they are not immediately in danger of starvation, as they have fruit and vegetables to eat and are able to borrow money, he called on the World Food Program to distribute rice for work.
"We need about 1,000 tons of rice to be distributed to needy farmers in exchange for their labor digging irrigation canals and community ponds," he said, adding that that the affected families lived in districts including Baset, Kong Pisei and Phnom Sruoch.
Despite positive results for the country as a whole, some Kompong Speu farmers reaped little rice in the last harvest due to poor rainfall he said.
Agriculture Minister Chan Sarun told his ministry's annual conference in Chaktomuk Theater on Wednesday that the yield from the last rainy and dry season rice harvests amounted to 5.9 million tons.
The amount is a significant rise over last year's figure, 4.17 million tons, and also over the 5-million-ton harvest the ministry projected for 2006 in November.
Nhim Vanda, first vice president at the National Committee for Disaster Management said mat details of food shortages remain unclear, but that some villagers in Kompong Speu, Prey Veng, Kandal, Svay Rieng and Pursat provinces could be wanting for food.
He added that the reported shortage in Kompong Speu was not a major concern for his committee.
Nhim Vanda met on Tuesday with WFP Country Director Thomas Keusters to discuss methods of assessing Cambodians' need for food in emergencies but they did not discuss the situation in Kompong Speu, Keusters said.
Keusters added that he was unaware of any current food shortage and was surprised by the reports.
"Obviously this has to be investigated," he said.
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