09 20 st gu Au THE AGRICULTURE ISSUE What’s Old is New Again: ‘Alternative’ Farming in Laos Fair Trade and Farming • Bringing smiles back to Sri Lankan spice farmers • Five Fair Trade farming groups at Hong Kong Food Expo Talking with Two Farmers in Timor-Leste 12 Steps against Poverty with Cambodian rice farmers Change takes Courage for Sheep Farmers in China Climate Change means Poverty for Farmers and Fishers And more...
What's Old is New Again
By Ratsamy Souvannamethy
This is my first
cropping has resulted in substantial
but then implementing things contrary
the necessity of identifying drivers and
trip to Huaphan
income gains for many farmers, yet has
to what they had suggested. As such,
champions of change in the villages,
in northeastern Laos
also led to the forest being cleared,
Oxfam’s job has been to help people
where the community itself – not the
for seven years, and I see a lot of
a loss in soil fertility, serious erosion,
see that we do what we say we will,
‘project’ – takes the lead. I have also
improvement in the infrastructure in
more landslides, and rice paddies being
and that we are genuinely interested
learned that meaningful change takes
the major towns – better roads which
washed away in the floods. Reliance on
in them being able to improve their
time, and that new things in particular
save travel time from Vientiane to
a single cash crop – mostly maize – has
lives. For this, we have had to establish
take even more time. This can be the
the provincial capital of Semnua from
also made residents vulnerable to price
personal relationships and work closely
technical principles of ‘integrated
38 to 16 hours, better telephone and
fluctuations. In 2008, maize dropped by
with individual farmers; we have had
agriculture’ to methodological
internet access, better schools and
more than 50 per cent.
to understand their concerns and help
values such as ‘par ticipation’ and
health facilities, and more tourists. At
To address these concerns, Oxfam
them design sustainable initiatives
‘empowerment’ – all of which Oxfam
first, I thought that the lives of poorer
Hong Kong is working in these eight
based on what they think is the best
is trying to introduce. In Laos, people
people there have also improved, but
remote villages through a partnership
for them and their community. This
may see these methods and principles
looking again, I am not so sure.
with the Agriculture and Forestr y
approach is not usually done in Laos
as being innovative and maybe even
On this trip, I am visiting eight
Office of Huaphan Province. The pilot
where the centralised ‘one-size-fits-all’
‘revolutionary’ while people in other
villages in two districts, Xiengkhor and
project has been introducing alternative
methodology is common.
countries might see the concepts as
Viengxay, near the Vietnamese border.
farming practices, such as integrated
During my first year with Oxfam,
‘old’ and already in place in their
These villages are all remote, located
and diversified farming instead of
I participated in discussions among
societies. For me, I see the concepts as
alongside the small rivers - the Houy
mono-cropping, which is a relatively
agricultural experts and the villagers,
being appropriate tools. With these
Deau and Nam Nga – and surrounded by
new thing here.
and also joined farmers on an exposure
tools, farmers can fulfill their personal
mountains. It takes about five hours to
In the beginning, I thought that the
trip to meet with farmer-practitioners
potential and improve the way of life for
drive to Xiengkhor from the provincial
learning and application would be easy
for some hands-on training. I have
the entire community.
capital, and during the rainy season,
and straightforward, but it did not go as
learned a lot . I have learned the
getting to the communities can be
expected. This had a lot to do with the
importance of building up trust and
difficult. As we travel around, it is easy
time that it takes to build up trust and
genuinely understanding individual
to be overtaken by the richness and
confidence, as well as with the ‘new’
and community contexts before doing
beauty of the landscape and culture.
participatory way of working that Oxfam
any ‘development’ work. I have learned
For generations, the way of life
espouses. To be frank, we development
ha s b e en ‘simple’ here : villager s
workers can be seen as newcomers
traditionally plant upland rice and rely
and outsiders, and farmers are slow to
on forest products for their food and
trust us given painful experiences in
income. In the past few years, however,
the past with ‘development’ projects
agricultural practices have changed from
that have not really benefited them.
subsistence farming to growing larger-
Villagers can also be wary of people
scale commercial crops. This mono-
asking their opinions about projects,
COVER: Disomenica, a Fair Trade spice farmer in Sri Lanka, with her nutmeg / Photo: Au Sik Hung
Based in Vientiane, Ratsamy Souvannamethy joined Oxfam Hong Kong as a Programme Officer in 2008. The agency has been supporting projects in Laos since 1995, and began working in Huaphan in 2007. Ratsamy at work in the field, and posing for a photograph with villagers.