Evaluating cropping system options for farmers in the lowland rice-based systems of Cambodia

Abstract

Rainfed lowlands account for nearly 90% of the total rice area in Cambodia. Annual rice production from the rainfed lowlands is over 7 million tonnes accounting for 77% of total rice production.However, the majority of rainfed lowland farm households are resource-poor, owning less than a hectare of paddy land, and, given the monsoonal (wet-dry) climate, grow only a single low-yielding rice crop per year in the wet season (WS), primarily for subsistence. This lowland rice farming system is subject to various pressures from unreliable rainfall, poor soil fertility, insect and weed pests, the use of traditional varieties and cropping practices, restricted access to irrigation, and limited farm resources. Moreover, there are few options for earning cash income, given the reliance on subsistence rice cultivation in the WS and the inability to use land and labour productively in the dry season (DS).The research reported in this thesis aimed to explore the potential for agricultural development and poverty reduction in the rainfed lowlands of Cambodia, with particular emphasis on the role of irrigation. First, the thesis sought to evaluate the situation, constraints, and management of farms in rainfed lowland villages in southern Cambodia. Next, it compared the options available to farm managers and village communities in similar biophysical and socioeconomic environments but with different degrees of access to irrigation. Finally, it identified the potential development pathways and adaptive responses of farm managers in the rainfed lowland environment.The research was carried out in rainfed lowland districts in Takeo and Kampong Speu Provinces, representing a typical lowland rice-growing region that was densely-populated and with low percapita ownership of paddy land. A comparative case-study design was used with multiple units of analysis. Three villages were selected that experienced similar biophysical and socioeconomic environments but had different degrees of access to irrigation, with Trapeang Run depending on small houseyard ponds, Snao using tubewells to extract groundwater, and Ta Daeng Thmei benefiting from gravity-fed irrigation from a medium-size reservoir. Each village was considered as an individual case, with cross-case comparison used to develop generalisations about the research objectives.A range of research methods were employed between 2010 and 2013 for data collection, including reconnaissance visits, household surveys, discussions with village heads, key informant interviews, analysis of market trends, farm walks and direct observation, use of village data manuals and documents, surveys of pond-water and groundwater, analysis of rainfall data, soil surveys, and field crop experiments. Analytical methods applied to the analysis of household survey data and other data comprised conventional descriptive statistics, multivariate statistical techniques, and iii conventional farm management economics, adapted to the perspectives of semi-commercial farm households.Trapeang Run was typical of ra...

The Role of Irrigation in the Commercialisation of Rice Farming in Southern Cambodia

“…Where public investment in such irrigation schemes is feasible, farming options are increased, though there are issues that must be addressed at the community level to maintain the irrigation infrastructure and manage water use. A range of research methods were employed between 2010 and 2013 for data collection, including reconnaissance visits, household surveys (with 200 respondents across the three villages), discussions with village heads, key informant interviews, analysis of market trends, farm walks and direct observation, use of village data manuals and documents, surveys of pond-water and groundwater, analysis of rainfall data, soil surveys, and field crop experiments (Chea 2015). Each village was studied as an individual case, with cross-case comparison used to develop broader generalisations.…”