Desktop Study on - Regional Climate Change Adaptation ...

Assessment of Capacity Gaps and Needs of South East Asia Countries
in Addressing Impacts, Vulnerability and Adaptation to Climate Variability and Climate Change
Center (NAFReC) (NAFRI, 2008b) reviewed the
institutional responses in the agricultural sector.
Impacts on Agriculture and Food
Security Sector
Snidvongs’ (2006) has undertaken a study on
climate change impacts due to extreme hydrological
events and changes in water resources, including
crop modelling for assessing the impact of climate
change on rice productivity in Southeast Asia. <strong>Study</strong>
findings indicate that the rain-fed rice production in
Lao PDR, more specifically in Savannakhet province
– shows tendency to be only slightly reduced under
the modelled climate change scenario, taking into
account longer hot and shorter cold periods (see
also chapter 2.1.3 and Figure 4). However, it is to be
noted that potential impacts due to more frequent
and intense floods have not been assessed in this
study. Indeed, discussions with farmer communities
in Lao PDR have shown concerns among the farmers
in view of an increased possibility of floods in future
due to climate change (Chinvanno et al., 2006).
Already, climate variability has been affecting Lao
farmers, due to which adopting adaptation measures
is necessary. The adaptation measures have evolved
over the years, mainly because of the increasing
variability in the dates of onset and end of the rainy
season, changes in the wind direction, changes in
rainfall distribution pattern throughout the season,
and an increase in thunderstorm activity. Further,
occurrence of these climatic events have increased
in frequency throughout the rainy season, namely
midseason dry spell after that rice seeds are sowed
and occurrence of floods before the crop has been
harvested have posed significant threats to farmers’
livelihoods (Chinvanno et al., 2006).
Vulnerability and Adaptation in the
Agriculture and Food Security Sector
Vulnerability
The country has seen a significant reduction of
poverty due to the economic growth during the past
two decades and despite the fact that the agriculture
sector is the population’s predominant economic
activity, insufficient food security is still affecting an
important part of the Lao population (WFP, 2007).
One main reason is that the country is predominantly
mountainous – about 80% of the total surface (Lao
PDR, 2009a) – making significant portions of the
land not accessible by road and/or not cultivable
(WFP, 2007). Especially in rural areas, chronic
malnutrition is alarmingly high, with 50% of the
children being affected. This indicates that Lao’s food
security has not improved over the past decade. The
study highlights that 13% of Lao’s rural population
faced food insecurity at the time of the studied
period during the post-harvest season and more
than 50% were at risks to becoming food insecure
because of floods and droughts (internal shocks) or
oil price peaks (external shocks). This means that in
total, two thirds of the rural population is effectively
or potentially affected by food insufficiency. The
study identified droughts as the biggest threat to
the food insecurity, potentially affecting 46% of the
rural population.
Adaptation
Farm households in Savannakhet Province have
developed considerable ability to adapt to existing
climate variability and hazards, states Snidvongs
(2006) and the working report of Chinvanno et
al. (2006). Chinvanno et al. (2006) and Snidvongs
(2006) assessed the vulnerability and the adaptation
of farmers to climate change. The results of the
field survey indicate that the farmers’ vulnerability
varies from place to place, depending on the degree
of climate impact, socio-economic as well as the
area’s physical conditions. At the same time, the
socio-economic situation strongly influences the
adaptation measures undertaken by the rain-fed
farmers. Farmers in less developed socio-economic
conditions in Lao PDR tend to rely mostly on simple
farm level measures being implemented with limited
financial and other resources, the food security
of the household being a major focus. Adopted
farm level measures include raising livestock
and harvesting for increased food resources and
changes in seed varieties, timing and methods of
cultivation. Farmers in Lao PDR tend to rely on the
natural eco-system for improving their livelihood.
Farmers in more developed conditions such as in
Thailand, on the other hand, show the tendency
to adopt measures such as seasonal migration to
urban areas for diversifying the income and show
a higher dependency on improved technologies
and financial resources. Due to the limited extent
of adaptation measures at national and community
levels to date, the study identifies the adaptive
capacity at the individual farm levels as key limiting
factor for managing climate risks in Lao PDR. The
implementation of an early warning system together
with accurate risk communication techniques
reaching the affected population could improve the
performance of on-farm adaptation measures, but
constraints include the precision of climate forecasts
and the reliability of communication networks.
Also, the lack of suitable seed types, dependency on
rice, consumption preferences and lack of financial
knowledge and other resources impose limits to
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