Rice Farmers Bracing for Droughts, Floods

Though the rice-planting season has started and nationwide rice cultivation this month has been higher than planned, farmers are worried that adverse weather events caused by climate change will ruin their crops. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries’ planning and statistics department, the total area planted with rice in Cambodia reached 2.54 million hectares last week. This, the department said, was higher than the 2.47 million hectares cultivated during the same period last year.
 

Takeo is the leading province with 263,106 hectares of land planted with rice, followed by Battambang and Banteay Meanchey with 258,710 and 244,835 hectares respectively. But unpredictable weather caused by climate change, that could disrupt the livelihoods of farmers, is worrying many.
 

Soun Bovor, provincial governor of Banteay Meanchey, said that even though the rainy season started a month ago, some parts of the province are still facing drought. “We have finished planting the rice seedlings, but some areas have not enough water due to lack of rain. We are worried that the seedlings will die,” said Mr. Bovor.

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