Mekong region farming must adapt to social shifts in next 30 years - report

A farmer sprays pesticide over her rice field in Nakhonsawan province, 270 km (167 miles) north of Bangkok, Nov. 22, 2009. REUTERS/Chaiwat Subprasom

01 Apr 2010
By Thin Lei Win

BANGKOK (AlertNet) - In the Mekong river region, global warming is not the first worry on farmers' minds. Over the next 30 years, mainly social shifts such as a rising population and evolving diets will drive changes in agriculture, researchers said in a wide-ranging report.

But if farmers adapt to a growing demand for food and for increasingly popular meat and vegetables without depleting limited water reserves, they will also be better prepared for future effects of climate change, including an expected rise in the sea level which would flood some highly productive land, they said.

"In the next 20 or 30 years, climate change is not likely to be a major driver of change but beyond that, climatic shifts may call for major changes in agriculture," said the 24-page report by the International Water Management Institute, entitled "Rethinking Agriculture in the Greater Mekong Subregion".

The population of the region - which comprises Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam and China's Yunnan Province - is forecast to rise to over 340 million from 275 million, pushing up demand for food by at least a quarter and putting pressure on farmland, according to the report launched this week.

Meanwhile, rapid urbanisation and hydropower and irrigation developments in the region could wreak havoc on farming and fisheries.

So agricultural practices must be rethought - and not only in order to meet the demand for food, but also to protect the 30 to 40 percent of the region's labour force who earn their living in the sector.

Moreover, the region is a significant agricultural exporter. For example, between 2008 and 2009 Thailand and Vietnam exported more than 14 million tonnes of rice, mostly to Africa.

Overall, using more nimble and sophisticated farming methods will ensure farmers are well-equipped to deal with any upheaval - social or climatic - that awaits them in the next century.

"People's capacity to adapt to change is closely linked to wealth, diversification of income sources, education and access to infrastructure and technology. Promoting broad-based agricultural development to lift deprived rural communities out of poverty is probably the most effective adaptation strategy available," the report said.

Some recommendations by the report's authors:

• Land should be better managed so more crops can be grown in less space
• Fish can be cultivated in rice paddies. Rice paddies provide natural food for fish, while fish eat weeds and insects in the paddy field and fish manure fertilises rice
• Precautions should be taken to avoid losing rice and other crops in the process of drying, packing and transporting it. Such losses are estimated to be between 10 and 40 percent.
• Governments can promote agricultural diversification to protect farmers against wholesale crop failures
• Insurance schemes can be introduced to reduce the risk of adopting new practices. As one author, Robyn Johnston, put it, "we're asking for change from poor farmers who have very few options".
• Tariffs can be imposed on pesticides to discourage unnecessary use of the environmentally-harmful chemicals
• Water can be used more economically by, for example, collecting and storing water run-off on farms

Mekong agriculture ministers to discuss food security issues

10-04-2007
VNS

BEIJING — Agriculture ministers of six Greater Mekong sub-region countries met in Beijing yesterday for the first time to discuss a far-reaching programme in agricultural co-operation.

The six ministers of Cambodia, China’s Yunnan Province and Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam have since 1992 been working together under the GMS Economic Co-operation Programme initiated by the Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The programme has helped create transport corridors among the six countries, enabling faster trade of goods, and increased economic growth.

Urooj Malik, director of ADB’s Southeast Asia Department, said that agriculture must aim toward a more prosperous yet socially equitable sector, in which the full benefits of the "new agriculture" are shared by the poor.

Changes in the area have resulted in a range of new issues for the countries to address such as the possible effects on national and subregional food security on the rural poor because of the switch from food to bio-energy crops.

New animal and crop disease risks are becoming prominent, especially with the recent outbreaks of avian influenza in some countries of the subregion.

To deal with these issues, the countries must increase their capacities in science and technology as well as create new policies and regulations and food safety standards, the ADB said.

Over the past few years, an advisory body to the subregion’s agriculture ministers, the Working Group on Agriculture, has co-ordinated with a variety of stakeholders to create the Core Agriculture Support Programme.

These stakeholders include government and donor agencies as well as international and regional research and development organisations, non-government organisations and civil society.

The programme focuses on cross-border issues to encourage cross-border trade and investment in agriculture while contributing to food security and poverty reduction and ensuring the protection of the environment and sustainable use of natural resources.

Included also are the use of advanced agricultural science and technology in biosafety and biotechnology areas, policy and investment co-operation in biofuels and rural renewable energy, and the establishment of emergency response systems for agriculture-related crises.

The ministers’ meeting was preceded by a meeting on Sunday of senior agriculture officials from the six countries to finalise the framework for the cooperation programme agreement.

Mekong sub-region countries meet on tourism

30/03/2007

VietNamNet Bridge - The Working Group of the Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS) held its 19th session in Ho Chi Minh City on Mar. 29 on a mechanism for GMS tourism cooperation.

Representatives from tourism agencies of member countries, Cambodia, China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, also discussed the implementation of the sub-regional tourism development strategy.

They adopted seven tourism cooperation programmes, including tourism promotion, development of human resources, preservation of natural and cultural heritages, tourism development in support of the poor, facilitation of sub-regional internal travel, participation of private sector and upgrade of tourism infrastructure.

A forum on investment in Mekong tourism is scheduled to be held in Ho Chi Minh City on Mar. 30, focusing on creating a good environment for small and medium-sized tourism enterprises.

(Source: VNA)

Mekong Countries forge landmark transport agreement

2007-03-20
Infrasite.net

The countries of the Mekong region took a major step forward today in linking their nations through improved transportation and border facilities

Manila, Philippines - The Cross Border Transport Agreement streamlines the regulations and procedures for crossing between borders in the Greater Mekong Subregion, which includes Cambodia, People’s Republic of China, Lao People’s Democratic Republic, Myanmar, Thailand, and Viet Nam.

“Improving transport infrastructure and lowering trade barriers is crucial to growing the economies of the Mekong subregion and lessening poverty,” said Arjun Thapan, Director General of ADB's Southeast Asia Department. “This agreement is a crucial instrument for advancing trade, investment, tourism, and access to vital services in the subregion.”

The countries of the Greater Mekong Subregion completed and signed in Beijing 2007-03-20 the last four of twenty annexes and protocols that will govern this key transport initiative, which has been supported by ADB.

The agreement is designed to ease cross-border transport of goods and people in the Mekong subregion by removing or reducing non-physical barriers. This is done through measures such as single-stop customs inspections, visa assistance for those involved in cross-border trade, and facilities for allowing vehicles to pass across borders with reduced inspections.

The Cross Border Transport Agreement has been in operation since June 2005 at the border between Lao Bao in Viet Nam and Dansavanh in Lao PDR. Six other border-crossing points in the Greater Mekong Subregion are expected to be included within the year.

The heads of the respective national transportation committees in the Mekong Region met in Beijing 2007-03-20 to sign the agreement’s remaining provisions, review its progress and make future plans.

Greater Mekong Subregion emerges as an attractive proposition for Thai tourism industry

Feb 14, 07

By Satish Gupta | eTN Asia

Providing an insight into the profile of its foreign visitors, Thailand tourism authorities have stated that ASEAN countries contributed about one-fourth of its total visitor arrivals during the first nine months of 2006. Exact totals for 2006 are not immediately available.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), which is targeting 14.8 million international visitor arrivals in 2007 with estimated target revenues of 547.5 billion baht, stated that the nine-month period (January-September 2006) provide a reasonably good indication of trends. During this period, international visitor arrivals to Thailand totaled 10,092,740, up 23.29 percent over the same period of 2005.

The Airports of Thailand Public Limited Company, which manages all the international airports in the country, reported that passenger movements (embarked, disembarked, and transit) at Bangkok International airport totaled 42,628,920 in all of 2006, up 9.35 percent over 2005.

In January – September 2006, arrivals from ASEAN countries to Thailand grew 16.60 percent to 2,461,310.

“Although the traditionally strong market of Malaysia topped the list with 1,185,949 arrivals, the real story is the strong growth coming from new markets in the neighboring countries of the Greater Mekong Subregion,” stated TAT.

Vietnam showed an increase of 33.63 percent, Lao PDR up 29.16 percent, and Cambodia up 10.5 percent. The visitors from Singapore increased by 6.54 percent, totaling 480,335.

During the same period, international visitor arrivals from East Asia rose by 23.54 percent to 5,694,169 in January-September 2006. Markets that have shown good growth include Korea (+ 41.52 percent), China (+36.93 percent), Hong Kong (+33.85 percent) and Taiwan (+26.36 percent). Visitor arrivals from South Asia market totaled 476,320 during January-September 2006, up 18.53 percent over the same period of 2005.

“Arrivals from Europe rose by 24.66 percent to 2,423,498. Russia was the outstanding market with a growth of 97.45 percent during this period,” stated TAT.

Other main markets like the UK were up by 10.40 percent, Germany by 21.04 percent, Sweden by 46.06 percent, Norway by 33.11 percent and Finland by 30.39 percent.
As far as the American region was concerned, Thailand witnessed a 12 percent increment to gain 659,981 visitors with the US market up by 9.74 percent and Canada 18.77 percent. Visitor arrivals from Oceania were up to 28.15 percent to 459,985.

The Middle East market performed well, resulting in a 36.25 percent rise in arrivals to 301,710, while Arrivals from Africa were up 24.70 percent to 77,077.