Rice-based Farming Systems Research Articles

Integrating veterinary and poultry component with rice-based farming system for effective utilization of resources, environmental restoration and profitability

Integrating veterinary and poultry component with rice-based farming system for effective utilization of resources, environmental restoration and profitability

Climate Risk Management at Farmer’s Field through Adaptation Strategies for Resource-Poor Farmers of Assam, Northeast India

Farmers in Assam's North Bank Plains Zone are generally resource-poor and have limited adaptation ability; rainfall anomalies make the Zone's rainfed agriculture very sensitive, risky, and unprofitable. Participatory on-farm trials involving 25 farmers (5 from each village) representing different land situations for evaluating various adaptive strategies on rice-based cropping systems were conducted from 2011 to 2020. Ten years of rainfall data (2011-2021) are evaluated in connection to dry spells and their effects on rainfed rice-based farming systems. The village receives 2848.5 mm of annual rainfall, with distribution patterns of 25%, 67%, 5.0%, and 3% during the pre-monsoon, monsoon, post-monsoon, and winter seasons, respectively. Among the years under study, it has been observed that during 2010, 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2020, the district received excess annual rainfall and deficit in 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2018, 2019 and 2021,respectively. The current studies were designed with two primary strategic components in mind viz., Real-time Contingency Planning (RTCP) and Preparedness. Interventions under the RTCP were designed to deal with delayed monsoon onset, early-season drought, mid-season dryspell, and terminal drought in winter rice and rabi crops. Preparedness includes changes in cropping pattern, in situ and ex situ rainwater management systems, alternate land use under low-cost polyhouse, mushroom cultivation, vermicompost production, fodder bank and village seed bank to cope with weather aberrations. An increase in yield of HYV rice varieties Ranjit (33%), Mahsuri (12.3%) and Gitesh (32%) was observed when sowing was done before 15 June over late sowing conditions. An increase in yield of 21.73 % and 44.60%. 58.67% as compared to farmers' Practice during 2013-14, 2014-15, and 2016-17 respectively, has been observed. The performance of double cropping systems recorded the highest B: C ratio of 2.03 and 1.75 in winter rice + rapeseed followed by winter rice + potato sequence as compared to mono-cropping of winter rice.

Adaptation constraints and prospects for future research priorities in lowland rice-based farming systems: learning experiences from Northwest Cambodia

Sustainable agricultural development not only addresses global food insecurity but may also alleviate poverty by enriching the lives of millions of smallholder farmers. Improving the sustainability and profitability of agriculture where smallholders are dominant creates profound impacts because small landholding farmers produce approximately 70–80% of the global food. The need for a thorough understanding of the factors affecting farmers’ adoption of agricultural technologies and practices has been identified from extant literature as an important research gap. Responding to the research gap and need, this study examined the challenges that prevent farm households from adopting improved farming practices and/or technologies in Banteay Meanchey and Battambang provinces in Northwest Cambodia. A total of 524 rice producing farm household representatives were randomly selected from a household database maintained by the local government authorities. A mixed methods approach was used in the study including semi-structured interviews followed by in-depth interviews, field observations, and literature review. Farmers were found to be confronted with a range of challenges and concerns, including soil degradation, weeds, diseases, insect pests, high production costs, flooding, droughts, changing rainfall pattern, and unreliable rainfall distribution. The research findings demonstrate that improved crop production practices (e.g., adopting mechanised direct seeding methods of crop establishment, maintaining and improving soil health through crop residue retention, growing cover crops, etc.) and better resource use efficiency (e.g., reducing seeding rates to less than 100 kg/ha, being more strategic in the use of integrated nutrient, weed, and pest management strategies, etc.) can be a starting point for sustainable intensification of rice production. This transition towards intensifying paddy production sustainably may become even more effective through a clear understanding of local contexts, farm household characteristics, available resources, and the farm management practices and constraints. We observed that farmers and their associations have yet to be fully recognised as partners and actors in Cambodia. Instead, they tend to be viewed as beneficiaries and recipients of improved practices and technologies. We, therefore, propose that farmers and their associations be acknowledged and included in a process of co-creation of knowledge-practices. Such partnerships will enable the inclusion of factors (e.g., production costs, production risks, complexity and practicability of implementations, product market and prices, etc.) shown to influence farmers’ adoption of innovative farming practices and technologies. The original contribution of this article is a real-world account of the constraints and limitations experienced by smallholder rice farmers in Cambodia, which are connected to future research and development priorities in the region.

Towards sustainable productivity enhancement of rice-based farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa

In the past 50 years, rice has become an important crop for food security in sub-Saharan Africa. However, rice yields remain relatively low, and large yield gaps exist. This Special Issue brings together agronomy research on rice-based farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa and addresses three main, overarching questions: (1) what has been achieved in the past decades in terms of rice agronomy in sub-Saharan Africa, (2) what is the state-of-the-art regarding development of technologies and (3) what will be likely or required future directions? The broad topics included in this Special Issue are (1) yield trends and yield gap analyses, (2) soil & nutrient, water, weed and integrated crop management practices, (3) cropping systems, (4) genetic improvements, (5) crop simulation modeling, and (6) assessment of farmers’ rice cultivation practices and the sustainability of these practices. The papers cover different sub-regions, from the Sahel to the highlands of Madagascar and three major rice growing environments (irrigated lowlands, rainfed lowlands, and rainfed uplands). In this paper we describe the major challenges in the rice production sector in sub-Saharan Africa and historical efforts on agronomy research, and we provide a short introduction and discussion on the papers presented in this Special Issue. This Special Issue arrives at six main recommendations. 1. There is a need to increase research and development efforts focusing on rainfed rice-based systems. 2. More attention needs to be paid to research on the farming system or landscape level, aimed at development of integrated cropping and farming systems and integrated agronomic solutions. 3. Current and future agronomic rice research should thematically center around sustainability, including judicious natural resources management, climate change adaptation and mitigation, and conservation of biodiversity and environments. 4. To operationalize this, sustainability performance indicators need to be developed and used. 5. There is broad consensus regarding the need for more labor-saving technologies, including mechanization options, provided these do not increase the ecological footprint of production systems. 6. Future rice agronomy research work should be interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary, to better address the myriad of challenges of smallholder farmers in Africa. Papers presented in this Special Issue should inform on the state-of-the art in rice agronomy in SSA, and on ways to sustainably enhance rice production and self-sufficiency in this region.

Performance of different pulse crops in summer rice fallow of northern Kerala

Rice-rice-fallow is the most common rice-based farming system in northern Kerala, particularly in the districts of Kasaragod, Kannur and Kozhikode. Therefore, a field study was undertaken during the summer, 2018 at Regional Agricultural Research Station, Pilicode, Kerala, India to find the suitability of different pulse crops (cowpea, black gram, green gram and red gram) for summer fallows of double cropped lowland rice fields under varying nitrogen doses. Height at 100% Recommended Dose of Nitrogen (RDN) (38.73 cm), number of branches per plant at 100 and 75% RDN (9.40 and 9.93, respectively), leaf area index (LAI) at 100 and 50% RDN (1.16 and 1.28, respectively), crop growth rate (CGR) (4.57 g m−2 per day) and yield at 50% RDN (1681.16 kg/ha) was significant for cowpea. Cowpea and red gram performed better among the different pulses, in terms of yield. At 100 and 50% RDN, the nitrogen (N) (46.2 kg/ha and 60.0 kg/ha, respectively) and phosphorous (P) uptakes (7.3 kg/ha and 9.9 kg/ha, respectively) were on par in cowpea. At 75 and 50% RDN, the nitrogen (N) (52.6 kg/ha and 42.9 kg/ha respectively) and phosphorous (P) uptakes (4.6 kg/ha and 4.4 kg/ha, respectively) were on par in green gram. The potassium (K) uptake (25.0 kg/ha) was higher in cowpea (50% RDN). The available soil nutrients showed no difference after summer crop. Gross income (Rs.1,52,269.20/ha), net income (Rs. 70,902.20/ha) and B:C (benefit: cost) ratio (1.87) were higher for red gram. Under varied amounts of N in the same crop, there was no significant change in yield, gross revenue, or B:C ratio of pulses, indicating that the lower level of N (50% RDN) will suffice. It's also reasonable to assume that the residual impact of the previous two rice crops helped to lower N exposure when pulses were cultivated in double-cropped lowlands during the summer.

Yield and economic performance of various rice-based copping systems in central India

The current experiment was done at the research farm of Jawaharlal Nehru Krishi Vishwa Vidyalaya (JNKVV), Jablapur, Madhya Pradesh, in 2011-12 and 2012-13 to investigate rice performance under various rice-based cropping strategies. During the study period, 12 rice-based farming systems were investigated, including rice, wheat, chickpea, onion-green gramme, berseem, potato-sesame, gobhi sarson-black gramme, vegetable pea-sesame, potato-ground nut, gobhi sarson-sorghum, gobhi sarsonokra, french bean and marigold-sesame.Rice equivalent yield (REY), crop duration, gross monetary returns, cost of cultivation, net monetary returns and the benefit to cost (B:C) ratio were used to evaluate the performance of various rice-based cropping systems. Among the six cropping systems tested, the REY was found highest in the rice-gobhi sarson-okra cropping sequence (174.05 q ha-1) followed by rice-marigold-sesame (140.18 q ha-1).

Optimizing duck (Anas platyrhynchos) release for weed and insect pest control under integrated rice (Oryza sativa) based farming system

Rearing of ducks in rice-based farming system has multiple advantages which is not exploited due to misconception that ducks damage rice crop. This study was conducted at Agricultural College and Research Institute, Madurai during 2021 to evaluate duck release as an alternative for non-chemical weed and pest management in rice. Ducks were released in pairs of 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 in an area of 10 m2 for 3 hours of stable time and were evaluated for weed density, insect counts and for reduction in beneficial insect in paddy fields. Results highlighted a definite decrease in weed and insect counts over control with weed control efficiency as high as 85.5% and insect pest control efficiency of 74.50% over control while decreased the beneficiary insect population by two-fold. Based on the results, it could be concluded that, ducks released @ 8 nos. for 10 m2 for a duration of 3 h were sufficient to effectively control the weed and insect pest population during 30–40 days after transplanting in rice. Further examination is required in quantifying the optimum duck release per hectare and in situ feed available under rice + duck combination to ensure sustainable and profitable farming system.

On-farm Agro-meteorological evaluation of late sown wheat (Triticum aestivum) under irrigated agro-ecosystem of Upper Indo-Gangetic Plains

In Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP, ~18 mha geographical area), wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a predominant cropgrown in rabi. Improving the productivity of wheat in a rice-based farming system through a suitable cultivar inIGP is necessary to evaluate under the agro-ecological condition of IGP of India. A farmer’s participatory fieldexperiment was studied at three villages Saunta, Sathedi and Bhangela situated in Khatauli block of Muzaffarnagar(Uttar Pradesh) under two crop environments (low rainfall and high temperature, LRHT and heavy rainfall and lowtemperature, HRLT) with four wheat varieties during rabi of 2017–18 and 2018–19. In this study we have evaluatedthe productivity in isolation as well as in combination of prevailing weather scenario (2017–18 and 2018–19) underirrigated agro-ecosystems of Western Plain Zone of Uttar Pradesh. Interaction studied between crop environmentsand varieties indicated that PBW-550 and PBW 658 registered higher grain yield of 5514 and 5475 kg/ha, respectivelythan farmers practice (PBW-226, 4659 kg/ha) and DBW-90 (4647 kg/ha) in LRHT. However, under HRLT, PBW-658performed better (5326 kg/ha) over other cultivars. Mean grain yield of all four cultivars were recorded significantlyhigher under LRHT with 5074 kg/ha compared to HRLT where mean grain yield was 4710 kg/ha. A highly significant(P=0.01) negative association was found between grain yield and monthly rainfall (except December month) andcumulative rainfall of the crop season (-0.322**). Prevailing mean monthly air temperature during grain filling tomaturity phenophase was found to be positively associated with grain yield (r = -0.322*).

Factors contributing to farm-level productivity and household income generation in coastal Bangladesh's rice-based farming systems.

Large changes have taken place in smallholder farming systems in South Asia’s coastal areas in recent decades, particularly related to cropping intensity, input availability, climate risks, and off-farm activities. However, few studies have investigated the extent to which these changes have impacted farm-level crop productivity, which is a key driver of food security and poverty in rainfed, low-input, rice-based systems. The objective of this study was to conduct an integrated assessment of variables related to socioeconomic status, farm characteristics, and crop management practices to understand the major factors influencing crop productivity and identify promising leverage points for sustainable development in coastal Bangladesh. Using a panel survey dataset of 32 variables from 502 farm households located within polder (coastal embankment) and outside polder systems during 2005–2015, we employed statistical factor analysis to characterize five independent latent factors named here as Farming Challenges, Economic Status, Crop Management Practices, Asset Endowment, and Farm Characteristics. The factor Farming Challenges explained the most variation among households (31%), with decreases observed over time, specifically households located outside polders. Individual variables contributing to this factor included perceived cyclone severity, household distance to main roads and input-output markets, cropping intensity, and access to extension services. The most important factors for increasing crop productivity on a household and per unit area basis were Asset Endowment and Crop Management Practices, respectively. The former highlights the need for increasing gross cropped area, which can be achieved through greater cropping intensity, while the latter was associated with increased fertilizer, labor, and pesticide input use. Despite the importance of these factors, household poverty trajectory maps showed that changes in off-farm income had played the strongest role in improving livelihoods in this coastal area. This study can help inform development efforts and policies for boosting farm-level crop productivity, specifically through agricultural intensification (higher cropping intensity combined with appropriate and efficient use of inputs) and expanding opportunities for off-farm income as key pathways to bring smallholder households out of poverty.

Exploring opportunities for diversification of smallholders' rice-based farming systems in the Senegal River Valley

CONTEXTPolicy-based or technological interventions are more likely to be effective if aligned with farmers' objectives, constraints, and decision-making processes. OBJECTIVEThe objective of this study was to explore trade-offs and synergies of farming systems in response to innovative rice cultivation activities by understanding current farming systems, main drivers impacting farm management and farmers' perspectives on rice intensification. Understanding these interrelations is key in rice production areas, where smallholder farmers largely depend on growing rice to subsist. METHODSA rapid system analysis was conducted interviewing 20 farmers in 4 villages along the Senegal River Valley (SRV) to obtain a general view on farm functioning and farmers' perspectives on farming systems. A detailed system analysis with four farmers was subsequently conducted to provide an insight into the underlying processes regulating farm management. A multi-objective optimization model was used to quantitatively evaluate and explore farm performances based on four selected indicators representing: rice production, household agricultural profit, household labour and farm nutrient balance. RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONSThe results of this study showed that government programmes and farmers' Unions were strongly influencing farmers' decision-making in agricultural production. Farmers also reported that although rice was still essential for their livelihoods, there were transitions towards less rice production in the wet season with short duration rice varieties and more vegetable production. Both farmers' interviews and the modelling results suggested that farmers would be unlikely to increase or even maintain the area of rice double cropping, which has been strongly promoted by the Senegalese government. Instead, farmers would rather keep investing in vegetable production. SIGNIFICANCEThis modelling study shows the consequences of policy-based and technological interventions for farming systems and may inform both policy makers and farmers in situations where objectives are strongly divergent. Hence, modelling outcomes may be used to inspire discussion and innovation in order to align the government priority of ensuring national food security and farmers' objectives and constraints in the SRV.

Role of women in decision making process to rice-based farming system: A Study of North Bihar, India

Women play a vital and significant role in agriculture, particularly in developing countries where they make up a large percentage of the agricultural labour force. They are actively involving in all range of agricultural works including pre-harvesting, and post-harvesting activities. But it is unfortunate that they remain invisible workers. Therefore, their participation as decision- makers regarding these works is questionable. Hence the study was concentrated to analyse the role of farm women in decision-making in rice-based farming system of North Bihar. To analyse their decision making process, the study was conducted in Samastipur district of North Bihar. For the purpose of the study out of 20 blocks two rice growing blocks were selected randomly. Two villages were selected from each block randomly making a sample of four villages. The sample of forty farm families from each of the selected villages were taken by proportionate stratified random sampling technique on the basis of land holding possessed by them. Therefore, the total sample consisted of 160 respondents. Results indicated that men took independent decisions was 54.97 percent and women took independent decisions was 18.71 percent of all farm and money related decisions. Joint decisions were taken 26.86% of all farm and money related decisions. This revealed that men dominated women in all farm and money related decisions.

Integrating gender in rice research

Gender mainstreaming in agriculture is new trend to address the inequalities of resources and work participation between men and women for ensuring equity in gender. Though women constitute about half of the total agricultural labour, their access to resources as well as decision making power is limited. Particularly, women in rice-based farming system though undertake hard work, own or share very limited resources and benefits in comparison to other systems. Various needs of women, while undertake research and technologies developed should be addressed appropriately through gender focussed planning, project implementation, monitoring as well as impact assessment. A systematic understanding and capacity building of the planners, researchers, development and extension machineries on innovative mechanism and gender sensitive perspectives would bring socioeconomic upliftment of not only women but the whole society.

Integrating gender in rice research

Gender mainstreaming in agriculture is new trend to address the inequalities of resources and work participation between men and women for ensuring equity in gender. Though women constitute about half of the total agricultural labour, their access to resources as well as decision making power is limited. Particularly, women in rice-based farming system though undertake hard work, own or share very limited resources and benefits in comparison to other systems. Various needs of women, while undertake research and technologies developed should be addressed appropriately through gender focussed planning, project implementation, monitoring as well as impact assessment. A systematic understanding and capacity building of the planners, researchers, development and extension machineries on innovative mechanism and gender sensitive perspectives would bring socioeconomic upliftment of not only women but the whole society.

Farmers’ perceptions and management of risk in rice-based farming systems of south-west coastal Bangladesh

Farmers in coastal Bangladesh face significant production and market risks as well as uncertainty about trends in the farming environment. Understanding farmers’ perceptions of the risks they currently experience and the farming and livelihood strategies they adopt to mitigate risk is important to inform policies designed to safeguard coastal livelihoods in the future. In this paper, we draw on a case study of typical village in the coastal zone to explore (1) farmers’ perceptions of the cropping risks they face, (2) the implications of risk for the choice of cropping strategies within different farm types, and (3) the role of other farm and non-farm activities in mitigating risk to household livelihoods. Quantitative and qualitative farm-level data were collected through a reconnaissance survey, a village census, a household survey, and household case studies. Farmers saw the shortage of irrigation water in the dry season and uncertain weather patterns as the major sources of production risk. The main source of market risk was the fluctuation in farm-gate demand and prices for dry-season cash crops. Representative budgets were constructed for the major cropping systems practised by small, medium, and large farm households. The riskiness of these systems was simulated, based on farmers’ estimates of yield and price variability, and a stochastic efficiency analysis was undertaken. The current systems appeared economically viable given the typical range of yields and prices. While some were riskier than others, farm households were largely able to balance their livelihood portfolios to offset the risks. Major risk management strategies included adoption of stress-tolerant rice varieties, staggering the sale of rice, using early wet season rice as a buffer, switching from rice to non-rice crops in the dry season, and undertaking off- or non-farm employment within and outside the village. The dominant trend was to farm and livelihood diversification, contributing to household resilience. However, at the village level, public policy to safeguard the agricultural environment will be crucial to sustaining household risk management strategies.

Economic Assessment of Climate Adaptation Options in Myanmar Rice-Based Farming System

Agriculture is highly sensitive to climate change and understandings how the adaptation options improve the farming household’s adaptive capacity are critical to the agricultural policies. The study was carried out for the economic assessment of climate adaption options in rice-based farming system of Myanmar. The propensity score matching approach was applied to explore the existing adaptation options and its contribution on the farm income. In addition, the binary probit model was used to analyse the factors influencing those adaptation decisions. The erratic rainfall, especially dry spell period and unexpected rain during the critical crop growth, was the critical challenge of rice-based farming in the study. The timely operation of farm machineries was one of the major adaptation options for the farmers, followed by other options such as use of more agrochemicals and changing rice varieties including early maturity, high yielding and stress tolerant varieties. The combination of those adaptations gave additional 0.86-0.89 ton/ha yield, 152-158 USD/ha total return and 108-124 USD/ha profit to the adapter farmers. The institutional factors such as irrigation access, access to credit, access to weekly weather information and participation to agricultural training were critically important to the adaptation decision. Moreover, the social capital factors like farming experience, farm size and farm income share were also major influencing variables.

Assessment of Socio-Economic and Agronomic Characteristics Influencing Variety Choice in Rice Based Farming System in Fogera- Ethiopia

Assessment of Socio-Economic and Agronomic Characteristics Influencing Variety Choice in Rice Based Farming System in Fogera- Ethiopia

WHOSE GAP COUNTS? THE ROLE OF YIELD GAP ANALYSIS WITHIN A DEVELOPMENT-ORIENTED AGRONOMY

SUMMARYYield gaps have become a useful tool for guiding development-related agronomy, especially in the global South. While critics have challenged some aspects of the yield gap methodology, and the relevance of food security advocacy based on yield gaps, very few studies question the actual relevance, application and scalability of yield gaps for smallholder farmers (and researchers) in the tropics. We assess these limitations using two contrasting case studies: maize-based farming systems in Western Kenya and rice-based farming systems in Central Luzon, the Philippines. From these two cases, we propose improvements in the use of yield gaps that would acknowledge both the riskiness of crop improvement options and the role that yield increases might play within local livelihoods. Participatory research conducted in Western Kenya calls into question the actual use and up-scaling of yield measurements from on-station agronomic trials to derive estimates of actual and water-limited yields in the region. Looking at maize yield gaps as cumulative probabilities demonstrates the challenges of assessing the real magnitude of yield gaps in farmers’ fields and of deciding whose yield gaps count for agricultural development in Kenya. In the case of rice-based farming systems, we use a historical dataset (1966–2012) to assess changes in rice yields, labour productivity, gross margin and rice self-sufficiency in Central Luzon, the Philippines. While large rice yield gaps persist here, there appear to be few incentives to close that gap once we consider the position of crop production within local livelihoods. In this context, economic returns to labour for farm work were marginal: labour productivity increased over time in both wet and dry seasons, but gross margins decreased in the wet season while no trend was observed for the dry season. Since most households were rice self-sufficient and further increases in crop production would offer minimal returns while relying increasingly on hired labour, we question who should close which yield gap. Our case studies show the importance of contextualising yield gaps within the broader livelihood context in which farmers operate. We propose that this should be done at farm and/or farming systems level while considering the risks associated with narrowing yield gaps and looking into multiple performance indicators.

Intensification of rice-based farming systems in Central Luzon, Philippines: Constraints at field, farm and regional levels

Understanding the opportunities for sustainable intensification requires an integrated assessment at field, farm and regional levels of past developments. Two hypotheses regarding current rice production in Central Luzon (Philippines) were developed for this purpose. First, we hypothesize that there are trade-offs between rice yields, labour productivity, gross margin and N use efficiency and, second, that farm(er) characteristics and socio-economic conditions at farm and regional level affect the management practices used by farmers. These hypotheses were tested using two household surveys characterizing rice-based farming systems in Central Luzon in terms of changes over time (1966–2012) and spatial variability. Over the past half-century there was an increase in the proportion of irrigated fields and adoption of improved varieties, which allowed the cultivation of a dry season rice crop in Central Luzon. Moreover, transplanting has been replaced by direct-seeding and herbicides substituted hand-weeding. These resulted in greater rice yields and labour productivity, and contributed to gradual transition from subsistence to commercial farming systems, as observed in the increasing proportion of hired labour and rice sold. Our results indicate the existence of a trade-off between rice yields, labour productivity and N use efficiency as yield levels maximising labour productivity and N use efficiency were ca. 25% and 35% lower than climatic potential yield in the wet and dry season, respectively. At field level, this can be explained by 1) the use of transplanting as crop establishment method, which resulted into higher yields but lower labour productivity as compared to direct-seeding, and 2) the high N application levels, which led to higher yields but lower N use efficiency. In contrast, yield levels which maximised gross margin were ca. 80% of the climatic potential in both wet and dry seasons, so there was little trade-off between rice yields and economic performance. Regarding the second hypothesis results were not always conclusive. As an example, N application per ha was negatively associated with farm size and the timing of the first fertiliser application positively associated with household size and with the number of parcels. More intensive practices, and better farm performance, were recorded in the province at the heart of the irrigation system. We thus conclude that closing rice yield gaps in the production systems of Central Luzon incurs trade-offs with environmental and social objectives at field and farm levels but less with economic objectives. However, we could not clearly show whether, and to what extent, management practices used by farmers are influenced by farm or regional level constraints.

Stakeholders’ assessment of dike-protected and flood-based alternatives from a sustainable livelihood perspective in An Giang Province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam

Construction of extensive high dike compartments has spurred land use intensification on the upper floodplains of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. Increasingly intense rice-based farming within these compartments has changed the water dynamics of the delta, making it impossible to exploit the erstwhile benefits of floodwaters. Progressive contraction of the natural floodplains has led to reduced deposition of fertile sediments and environmental degradation, endangering the sustainability of farmers’ livelihoods. The Mekong Delta Plan recommends discontinuance of high dike construction in the upper delta and restoration of the floodplains. However, this requires a radical shift in the agricultural economy, halting intensification of rice-based farming systems and developing alternative farming systems that can flourish on restored floodplains using “living with floods” livelihood strategies. This paper explores stakeholders’ perceptions and appreciation of these contrasting farming and livelihood systems for the upper delta. It also examines the extent that alternatives to flood-based agricultural systems are viewed as feasible and attractive. We applied multi-criteria analysis (MCA) with analytic hierarchy process (AHP) to explore the views of double and triple rice farmers and experts on alternatives based on a set of economic, water management and environmental aspects. MCA results indicate a clear preference among both farmers and experts for flood-based farming systems with low dikes. Floodwater retention capacity, infrastructure for flood protection, environmental sustainability, and market stability were ranked as the most important factors contributing to livelihood sustainability on the delta.

Sustainability of PALAYAMANAN Project in the Rainfed Lowland and Upland Areas of Bulacan, Philippines

Diversified farming system called Palayamanan using rice as base crop integrating vegetables, livestock and other farming activities was undertaken by farmer-cooperators in a synergistic approach. With funds coming from DA-RFO III, location-specific rice-based farming system technologies in the rainfed lowland and upland areas of Bulacan were developed, promoted and extended to the farmers. The active participation of farmers, the energetic monitoring of agricultural extension workers from local government units and the collaborative efforts of research and extension institutions of the government were the key ingredients of sustaining the livelihoods of the farmers even during dry seasons. The process consisted of farmers’ organization, project orientation with LGUs and farmers, site selection and validation, establishment of model farms, capacity enhancement for farmers that covered field school, skills training, field days, Lakbay-aral and cross visits. Participatory technology demonstration, cropping system and variety adaptations appropriate in every location were also done. The capital roll-over of PhP 5,000 helped the fund sourcing for each of 120 farmer-cooperators in the form of loans. The six (6) model farms established were also aided with material inputs. Increased crop yields and crop diversity were achieved as well as profitability and upgraded level of living. Sustainability of the environment, increased knowledge and upgraded skills of the farmers and students involved were the ecological and technical changes attained. The project’s strategies were effective that even after the project implementation, the model farms were still maintained by the farmercooperators.