Suchergebnisse

The National Agroecology Programme (PRONAE) and the Southern Xayabury Application Point (PASS) of the Capitalization and Rural Development Support Programme (PCADR) have developed an approach in the provinces of Xayabury and Xieng Khouang that relies on direct sowing mulch-based cropping systems (DMC). This approach has provided relevant alternatives to traditional agricultural practices which can no longer ensure the foundations of sustainable agriculture. In view of the results obtained, be they socio-economic or environmental, the Council of Ministers asked the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) to promote these techniques throughout the country, and called for this approach to be included in university and school courses. It is in that context that the Sector-based Agroecology Programme (PROSA), whose main aim is to define and implement a national strategy for the dissemination of Conservation Agriculture based on agroecological techniques (DMC), operates. This strategy is based on implementing an Agroecology Action Plan relying on the necessary incorporation of natural capital in rural development policies. The plan involves programming activities, setting in place decision-making and operational processes and bringing into play financial, material and human resources on both a central and local level (province, district and sub-district). The finest level of intervention comprises groups of farmers linked to service centres set up by the government within the districts (Kum Ban Pattana). On each level, the agroecology action plan is to arise from an integrated and concerted approach, in which each category of rural development stakeholders is committed to a process in which their needs and skills are acknowledged by all. Likewise, on each level, it is necessary to define, in a concerted manner, the initiatives that have to be taken (diagnosis, planning, implementation, monitoring-appraisal), the tools required (training of the different stakeholders, organization and structuring of the State sector and of the private sector, contractualization between stakeholders) and the fields of involvement (extension, local development funding arrangements, management of natural resources, equipment management, organization of supply and marketing chains, etc.). Each of the two pilot provinces, Xayabury and Xieng Khouang, is in the process of defining its Provincial Action Plan in Agroecology. An initial diagnosis of farming systems and their envi ronmental impacts, along with the needs and contributions of each category of stakeholders, has been completed. The provinces then gave priority to defining decision making and operational processes, and setting in place financial arrangements for the Provincial Action Plans. Initially, two funding tools are under consideration: constitution of a development fund, and agricultural credit. On a central level, the decision-making and operational processes are directly attached to the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, notably via the Planning Department. The creation of a Research and Service Provider Centre in support of local and national development is envisaged. Likewise, on a central level, it is a matter of facilitating the implementation of training plans for the different stakeholders. Lastly, the inclusion of agroecology in university and school courses is under way. Also for the educational sector, it is necessary to define a training plan to strengthen the skills and abilities of teachers. The creation of a national, or even regional network associating agricultural faculties and agricultural schools would enable an economy of scale by more effectively taking advantage of complementarities and decentralization to a more functional local level.

In Southeast Asia, the rapid expansion of boom crops like hybrid maize, rubber, oil palm, or banana, has brought about daunting environmental and socioeconomic impacts such as deforestation, land degradation, and indebtedness. Why do farmers engage in and keep on pursuing this farming strategy despite the adverse effects on local landscapes and livelihoods? In the context of the northern uplands of Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR), we developed an innovative approach to understanding the decisions that lead to the emergence of the maize boom. We successively studied the adoption, expansion, intensification, diversification, and abandonment of intensive maize practices in locations in which these phases were ongoing at the time of study. To better contextualize decision making, we designed and applied local, serious games with farmers in seven different villages that were going through a maize boom. Then we designed a metagame that summarized our findings across all decision phases and local games in a generalized form. National agricultural experts validated the structure of the metagame by taking on the role of farmers and they witnessed that their cumulative decision making within the metagame lead to a maize boom too. Core findings include: (1) the maize boom and bust can be reproduced in a game environment that simulates the change of six factor combinations; and (2) Farmers in northern Laos reinvest maize profits into their long-term, socioeconomic goals. The approach presented combines micro- and macrolevel analysis of land-use change. On the one hand, it allows the exploration of the local, social-ecological contexts of land-use decisions. On the other hand, it provides a systematic procedure to scale up, generalize, and test the contextual knowledge and systemic understanding of a complex, large-scale land-use change process.

In mountainous areas of Southeast Asia, lowland paddy rice is often assumed to be the cornerstone of farming systems. Households production strategies are usually analysed by assessing access to two factors: lowland paddy and the rice self-sufficiency level of the household. Rainfed rice, pig raising and off-farm activities are associated with households that are deficient in paddy rice, whereas cash crops and the raising of large ruminants are described as a diversification process run by families who have already met their paddy rice needs (Castella et al, 2002). A survey of 73 households conducted in three districts of Xieng Khouang province revealed that traditional agriculture is being slightly modified by the emergence of new economic opportunities such as (i) increasing local and regional urban consumption demand, and (ii) better road access to markets. The survey divided households into ten different types according to their food security strategies. For paddy rice and marketable products, the labour and surface area allocated and the generated income by each type of product were all analysed. The labour and surface area allocated for both rice and market products, and the income generated by each product, are all assessed. When interpreting the difference in household response to markets, the local agro-ecological situation appears to be just as important as the level of rice self-sufficiency. In the highlands, lowland paddy rice remains the prevailing cropping system but livestock activities produce 80-90% of the generated income. In the warm valleys, lowland paddy rice also prevails but cash crops are becoming increasingly significant in terms of both generated income and dedicated labour force. More diverse cropping systems are present in the uplands and sloping areas, but in all cases the importance of the rice crop in achieving household food security is decreasing.

Le présent rapport rend compte de la mission d'appui à l'équipe technique du projet de développement du plateau des Bolovens. Elle avait pour objectifs d'encadrer les stagiaires français et laos sur l'étude du système agraire dans la zone basse du plateau et d'accompagner les travaux liés au programme recherche-développement. Plusieurs types d'activités ont été discutées avec l'équipe sur place: les études système agraire, les expérimentations en station et en milieu paysan, la réalisation des analyses de sol, la valorisation des bases de données, la cartographie, les études filières, l'élevage, la formation et le suivi-évaluation. Pour chacun de ces thèmes des observations et/ou des propositions ont été formulées.

Essarteurs de longue tradition, les paysans phunoï cultivent en défriche-brûlis les flancs escarpés des montagnes du nord du Laos dans le but d'assurer leur autosubsistance alimentaire. L'auteur a effectué un diagnostic du système agraire phunoï et a analysé ses transformations par rapport à sa propre histoire, aux évolutions de la société laotienne et à l'intégration progressive dans l'économie de marché. Les autorités du Laos veulent supprimer ce mode d'exploitation afin de préserver l'environnement forestier des bassins versants supérieurs, mais les solutions proposées ne permettent pas aux populations concernées de vivre dans des conditions décentes. Un projet de développement rural mis en oeuvre par le CCL avec le soutien financier de la CFD, doit répondre aux exigences politiques laotiennes de stabiliser la culture sur abattis-brûlis tout en permettant un développement économique et social harmonieux de la région. Ce projet porte sur le désenclavement des villages phunoï, le développement de l'élevage et sur la diversification des productions végétales.

Southern Sayaboury province has long been at the forefront of rural economic development in the Lao PDR. Over the past twenty years, livelihoods have undergone drastic changes and agriculture has become increasingly linked to the demand of the Thai market. At the same time, similar to the 1970s agrarian transition in northern Thailand, agricultural systems have shifted from traditional shifting cultivation systems based on fallowing, slash-and-burn and crop rotations, to more intensive systems based on heavy mechanized tillage, pesticides and hybrid seeds. Responding to substantial demand from local traders, smallholders have engaged massively in maize monocropping and have rapidly generated large profits. As a result, the area planted to maize in southern Sayaboury province has expanded rapidly to cover more than 42,000 ha, i.e., more than 88% of the total rainfed area cultivated in 2008. Although livelihoods have certainly been improved in the short term, in the longer term, this dual process of agricultural intensification and expansion can have very negative social and ecological impacts, including increased soil erosion (leading to the destruction of roads and siltation of paddy fields), gradual soil exhaustion, chemical pollution of soils and hydrological systems, and increased risk of human intoxication by pesticides. In the light of these various threats, and since 2003, the National Agro-Ecology Programme (PRONAE) of Laos has been developing and adapting direct seeding mulch-based cropping (DMC) systems through a participatory approach involving village communities and farmer groups. Since 2006, and based on PRONAE's research results, the PASS-PCADR project - a rural development project active in the 4 southern districts of Sayaboury province - has been disseminating DMC systems on a larger scale. Between 2005 and 2008, extensive surveys were carried out in order to: (1) assess the socio economic outcomes of DMC systems on a household level, (2) estimate the level of dissemination of DMC systems on a community level, and (3) determine the factors conditioning smallholder adoption or rejection of DMC systems. Surveys were carried out by the PRONAE programme in 4 villages (462 smallholders) and the PASS-PCADR project in 21 villages (2,160 smallholders). The results of these surveys show that there are currently more than 1,200 smallholders using DMC systems on a total of about 1,500 ha of cultivated land. Overall, the rates and levels of DMC system adoption by smallholders appear to be greater in areas where the environment is most degraded and/or particularly fragile. With significant levels of crop diversification and engagement in off-farm or non-farm activities, livelihoods in general appear more diversified in these areas. These trends can be considered as 'risk avoidance' strategies. By adopting DMC systems, smallholders attempt to avoid the environmental and economic risks associated with less sustainable systems based on heavy mechanization and maize monocropping. In turn, by diversifying their livelihoods, smallholders attempt to limit their vulnerability to the potential failure of a single economic activity. In contrast, in less environmentally-degraded and less fragile areas, the level of DMC system adoption is still rather limited. With more productive soils, mechanized monocropping can still provide high profits and, as such, retains the interest of a majority of farmers. Although on-farm experimentation has shown positive technical and economic results, DMC system dissemination faces many technical and socio-economic constraints. For instance, whilst no-till agriculture can certainly reduce productions costs (hence, contribute to improving the livelihoods of poor households), the credit and collection systems that have developed in southern Sayaboury province continue to favour conventional, mechanized agriculture and prevent farmers from adopting technical alternatives (i.e. crop rotation and diversifica

The Plain of Jars is an acid, infertile savannah grassland covering an area of about 60,000 ha in the western region of Xieng Khouang Province, northeastern Lao PDR. In this ecology, farming systems are mainly based on lowland rice cultivation and extensive livestock production. An increase in rice production and intensification of the livestock industry are two key components in the Lao government's poverty alleviation strategy for this area. The main agronomic constraints for developing crops and forage systems are related to serious unfavourable soil chemical characteristics. Low pH, along with nutrients deficiencies (in nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium and magnesium) and high levels of aluminium saturation probably have a negative effect on the growth of upland crops, as well as many pasture species. Moreover, severe phosphorus deficiency generates animal health problems. Since 2004, the Lao National Agro- Ecology Programme (PRONAE) has been working on innovative farming systems based on direct seeding mulch-based cropping system (DMC) principles, as a technical approach, and on a progressive in situ validation process with smallholders as a Research & Development (R&D) approach. The advantages of the methodology are presented through the case of a DMC system developed in 2005 by the project to intensify rice-beef production in the Plain of Jars. The farming system initially proposed was a 5-year rotational sequence where improved pasture land was implemented in the first year, fattening activities conducted in the following three years and pasture regenerated in the fifth year using rice as a cash crop to finance pastureland re- implantation. Costs and benefits of the system were simulated according to the data collected in the creation sites. At the end of the 5 years, an average net income of 160 $US/ year/ha and an average labour productivity of 2.5 US$ per ha and working day were expected. The system was then proposed to 89 families forming 16 farmers' groups in 12 different villages for an in situ validation covering 76 ha. Even though promising results have been described at the creation site, 3-years of continuous validation have revealed several constraints for mass extension. In- field monitoring and interviews with farmers showed the main constraints to be (i) Market channels' constraints or malfunctioning, (ii) Fencing costs and maintenance, (iii) Production costs rising faster than benefits, (iv) Credit access and supply, (v) Technical skills required for good-quality pastureland implementation and management and (vi) Cattle fattening management. This feedback has given rise to development-related discussions and proposals regarding credit access, market channel functioning and training supports to be provided to farmers. This feed back has also given rise to new research topics, such as (i) how to generate higher incomes during the first year of implementation and (ii) how to reduce fertilizer use (main production cost) while maintaining at the same time improved pastureland productivity. New farming systems based on direct sowing of rice associated with forage species on degraded native pastureland have therefore been tested at creation sites and are currently under validation with farmer groups. This rice-beef system "creation- validation" process shows (i) the need to maintain research activities in the development process and (ii) the merits of the "creation site / farmer validation group" system for determining the potential for technology dissemination.

In response to the global call to mitigate risks associated with antimicrobial resistance (AMR), new regulations on the access and use of veterinary antibiotics are currently being developed by the Lao government. This study aims to explore how the implementation of these new regulations might effectively reduce and adapt the sale, distribution and use of veterinary antibiotics in Lao PDR. To this end, we used the theory of change, framing the AMR issue within the context of the stakeholders involved in the veterinary antibiotics supply chain. Qualitative and quantitative methods were used to collect data, based on questionnaires (n=36 antibiotic suppliers, n=96 chicken farmers, n=96 pig farmers), and participatory tools such as a workshop (n=10 participants), semi-structured interviews (n=20), and focus group discussions (n=7 participants). The stakeholders' understanding of the AMR issue and potential challenges related to the implementation of new regulations regarding access and use of antibiotics, were also investigated. We mapped the veterinary antibiotic supply chain in Lao PDR, and analysed the roles and interactions of its stakeholders. Twenty-three stakeholders representing the private and the public sectors were identified. Many informal and formal links connected these stakeholder within this supply chain. The lack of veterinarian-farmer interaction and the evolving nature of the veterinary antibiotics supply chain accentuated the challenges of achieving behaviour change through regulations. Most of the antibiotics found on farms were categorized by the World Health Organisation's as critically important antibiotics used in human medicine. We argue that AMR risk mitigation strategy requires dialogue and engagement between private and public sectors stakeholders, involved in the importation, distribution, sale and use of veterinary antibiotics. This study further highlighted that AMR is a complex adaptive challenge requiring multi-sectoral approach. We believed that a sustainable approach to reduce and adapt veterinary antibiotics use should be prepared in collaboration with stakeholders from private and public sectors identified in this study, in addition to the new regulations. This collaboration should start with the co-construction of a common understanding of AMR issue and of the objectives of new regulations.

A comparative analysis of agroecology network led to a classification based on their conditions of emergence, their structure and governance mechanisms. The study points the strengths and weaknesses of the existing networks at the different scales. It shows that the different agroecology schools are not necessarily well coordinated at each level (national, regional, global) nor across levels for each agroecology school. The activities of a regional agroecology learning alliance should be grounded in strong national networks and endorsed by global networks.

Study region: In this study, 33 catchments across the Lower Mekong Basin in Southeast Asia are examined to detect historical changes in their hydrological response via a model-based methodology. Study focus: Intensive development over the past half century across Southeast Asia's Lower Mekong Basin has inevitably affected natural resources. Large areas have been converted from forests for subsistence and commercial agriculture, and urban development. We implement an innovative approach to screen hydrologic data for detecting impacts of such large-scale changes on hydrological response. In a first step, temporal changes in the rainfall-runoff relationship were assessed using the parsimonious, two-parameter GR2M hydrological model. In a second step, a distribution-free statistical test was applied to detect whether significant changes have occurred in the wet season (high flow) and dry season (low flow) conditions. New hydrological insights for the region: Our results indicate that the majority of catchments (64% of those considered) with sufficiently long data records exhibited no discernable trends in hydrological response. Those catchments that did exhibit significant trends in hydrological response were fairly evenly split between increasing trends (between 21% and 24%) and decreasing trends (between 15% and 12%) with time. There was a lack of evidence that these changes where brought about by shifts in precipitation or potential evapotranspiration; however, catchments exhibiting significant increasing trends in hydrological behavior were found to have different land cover compositions (lower percentage of forest coverage and subsequently higher paddy rice coverage) than those exhibiting significant decreasing trends. The approach presented here provides a potentially valuable screening method to highlight regions for further investigation of improved mechanistic understanding. Without this connection, we might be blind to future hydrological shifts that can have significant impact on development.

Overall objective: The main objective of research on vegetable marketing in Laos is to help harmonize vegetable production with the market demand in terms of quantity, quality, and price. Review of available data: First a review of existing data was carried out, especially the JICA and FAO studies on food marketing in Laos. The studies point out the importance of Vientiane plain for fruits and vegetables in addition to Boloven Plateau (Champassak province) which mostly provides cabbage and potato. The three major food markets are: Tong Kan Kham, That Luang and Kua Dim; they operate both as wholesale and retail markets. Market traders usually combine a variety of functions and specialized wholesalers are few. Objective of market survey: Two surveys were organised to gain additional information. The first one, investigation of market flows and chains (activity 1) aims at appraising how the market is organised spatially and in terms of functions and to quantify the supply from the different districts/villages and imports. The second one, appraisal of traders¿ strategies, aims at: (i) finding out the structure of the market (competition) and coordination relationships among the different actors; (ii) comparing the different origins (peri-urban, rural, imports) in terms of price, quality, and availability of commodities; (iii) identifying advantages and constraints of actors including access to information. Method of market survey. The surveys took place in Tong Kan Kham, That Luang and Kua Dim markets. For the investigation of market flows and chains (activity 1), around one-third of market agents were interviewed, accounting for 92 people. The survey took place only once, in June, but data was collected on the variations during the year. Activity 2 took place in August on a sample of 50 traders. In the two surveys, the sample includes the different stakeholders present in markets (retailers, wholesalers, assemblers, producers). Main results: Among the selected vegetables, the following are subject to imports: Chinese kale; round and olive tomato; big Chinese mustard; cucumber, while the others (pakchoi1, small Chinese mustard, lettuce, yard long bean, cherry tomato) only originate from Lao production (see Table 2). The vegetables subject to imports correspond to varieties that are difficult to produce during the rainy season. In June 2002, that is the beginning of the rainy season, imports represented 22% of quantities transacted for Chinese kale, round tomato and cucumber; 15% for olive tomato; 2% for big Chinese mustard. On the whole, when taking the 9 vegetables, imports represent only 8% of total quantities transacted. Most leafy vegetables originate from Vientiane municipality, less than 30 kilometres from the city center, the biggest supplier being Hatsayphong (around 60% of the flows of leafy vegetables considered in the survey). On the whole, more than 80% of leafy-vegetables originate from less than 30 kilometres from the city centre. Hatsayphong is the main supplier of tomato, while Saixetha is the main supplier of cucumber. Decrease in the number of traders selling vegetables occurs from June to September, it is also the time of imports. The imports of tomato and Chinese kale start in April and end in December, maximum imports happening from June to August. Despite the short distance between farms and markets, the marketing chains are characterised by a certain complexity, the combination between wholesale and retail, collection and wholesale, being frequent: more than half the traders combine different functions. The typical chain involves farmers, collectors, wholesalers and retailers. More than 65% of quantities traded involve more than one intermediary between farmers and retailers, even for a perishable vegetable like water convolvulus. The specialisation of wholesale and retail stages is more frequent for imported tomato than for local tomato. The frequent overlapping of functions may be explained by the absence

L'adaptation au changement climatique et son atténuation comptent parmi les principaux défis que doit relever l'agriculture. Au Sud, ces défis s'associent à un impératif de sécurité alimentaire. L'arrivée du changement climatique sur l'agenda international a favorisé le recyclage d'une multitude d'initiatives visant à y faire face avec, en corollaire, l'apparition de nombreuses controverses. Or, même si les échelles et les acteurs visés peuvent différer, toutes ces initiatives tentent d'une façon ou d'une autre de fournir des options techniques, sociales, économiques et politiques pour accroître la résilience de l'agriculture face au changement climatique. Trois approches sont fortement débattues et portent sur ces relations entre l'agriculture et le climat : l'agriculture climato-intelligente, l'agroécologie et l'initiative 4 pour 1000 relative au carbone du sol. Au-delà des divergences conceptuelles et des interprétations parfois partisanes entre ces trois approches, l'agriculture des pays du Sud doit pouvoir bénéficier de leurs synergies potentielles.

Adaptation to climate change and its mitigation are some of the biggest challenges facing agriculture. In the global South, these challenges are associated with the need for food security. The arrival of climate change on the international agenda has prompted the recycling of a multitude of initiatives to address this problem, leading inevitably to the emergence of numerous controversies. However, although the scales and actors targeted may differ, all of these initiatives are trying in one way or another to provide technical, social, economic and political options to increase the climate resilience of agriculture. There is heated debate about three approaches, which focus on these relationships between agriculture and climate: climate-smart agriculture, agroecology and the 4 per 1000 Initiative on soil carbon. Beyond the conceptual differences and the sometimes partisan interpretations of these three approaches, agriculture in the Southern countries needs to take advantage of their potential synergies.

The Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza virus H5N1 is still present in some of the poorest areas of the world as South-east Asia where the disease occurred on a regular basis in human and poultry. Early detection of the disease in poultry population is the most efficient method to avoid the spread of the virus to human. In poor rural communities of developing countries, such as Cambodia, this disease detection is often based on volunteer case reporting by farmers. However this surveillance method carries challenges when applied in difficult socioeconomic environments: low density of health facilities, poor communication systems, weak awareness of population, distrust on governmental authorities and lack of qualified staff. We have in this thesis conceived and applied new methods for the evaluation, the design or the improvement of passive surveillance in order to propose innovative methods to increase the involvement of rural communities in the reporting of zoonotic diseases.

Différents mécanismes d'intervention sont proposés pour transformer les paysages agricoles de manière à ce qu'ils remplissent de multiples fonctions, compatibles avec les objectifs du développement durable. Dans le cas de l'atténuation et de l'adaptation au changement climatique, des politiques incitatives et des mécanismes de rémunération des acteurs locaux sont promues dans le cadre des initiatives REDD+. Sur le terrain, ces interventions visent à assurer simultanément la fourniture de services écosystémiques et le maintien, voire l'amélioration, des moyens d'existence locaux. Dans cet article, nous explorons le rôle que peut jouer l'évaluation participative dans la mise en oeuvre de paiements pour services environnementaux au sein de communautés rurales d'Indonésie, du Laos, du Vietnam et de Chine. Engagées dans un processus d'intégration rapide à l'économie de marché, ces communautés ont transformé leurs systèmes d'abattis-brûlis traditionnels pour s'orienter vers différentes voies d'intensification agricole au cours des dernières années. L'évaluation positive ou négative de ces évolutions fait nécessairement l'objet de jugements de valeur dans les choix effectués entre différentes options possibles. La formulation de ces options en termes de services écosystémiques rendus permet de comparer les trajectoires paysagères et leur impact sur les conditions de vie locales. Sur ces bases, les communautés peuvent explorer des scénarios de transformation de leurs pratiques agricoles, négocier des compromis entre services écosystémiques et identifier les " gagnants " et les " perdants " potentiels. Ces simulations ont montré l'importance du calendrier de mise en place des programmes REDD+ par rapport aux transformations agraires en cours. Elles pointent le risque de s'éloigner des ambitions initiales d'un impact sur les émissions de carbone pour devenir un instrument supplémentaire de développement durable.