Strengthening Resilience to Climate Change

In Cambodia, agriculture plays a vital role to ensure food security and contribute to economic growth. Over 80 percent of the population of Cambodia lives in rural areas and about 70 percent depends on agriculture for their livelihoods. However, farmers in Cambodia are facing major production constraints from unreliable rains, drought, changes in weather patterns, and pest and disease outbreaks caused by climate change, affecting their economic and livelihoods.

To help farmers with this challenge, Feed the Future Cambodia Harvest II ("Harvest II") awarded two grants to local NGOs - Aphivat Strey (AS) and International Institute of Rural Reconstruction (IIRR) - to work directly with 2,000 producers in Battambang, Pursat, and Siem Reap, three of the four Feed the Future’s Zone of Influence.

Producer Phon Hok (right) is packaging cucumber into 10 Kg plastic bags ready for buyers to transport to the market.

©Feed the Future Cambodia Harvest II/2018/Solina Kong

This climate change adaptation and resilience activity under the Feed the Future Cambodia Harvest II project is intended to improve access to and use of climate information, resulting in risk-reducing actions in the targeted intervention areas. The main activities under these grants is to identify successful technologies or practices, then provide training and follow-up coaching to sure that producers and producer groups are applying climate smart practices on-farm. The trainings include bed raising, trellising, drip irrigation and mulching, healthy seedlings, and composting. This training is helping farmers produce more efficiently, which improves their ability to increase production quality and quantity to meet buyer demand. As of June 2018, 14 climate resilience practices were introduced to 1,184 vegetable producers (59% women; 11.5% are youth) through direct trainings and follow-up visits. As a result, 64% of them have applied multiple climate resilience practices.  

Producer Sophal collects long beans to sell at a local market in Battambang.
©Feed the Future Cambodia Harvest II/2018/Solina Kong

For example, vegetable producer Phon Hok is one of the farmers who received trainings and has applied and improved his production capacities significantly. Hok said, “I used to read agriculture books and asked [for advice] from neighbors but now I have benefited from an expert coming to my farm.” Similarly to Hok, vegetable producer Sophal said that her vegetable production is much better in term of quality and quantity, helping her to increase her income and support her family.

Harvest II also launched a series of one-hour radio talk shows on climate resilience practices that was broadcast over a six-month period through one of the most popular local radio stations. Speakers from private sector such as input supply companies, NGOs, and model farmers, were invited to share their experience with farmers calling in to ask for more information on their production challenges. Over this period, 12 talk shows on climate resilience were broadcast and shared over social media like Facebook, reaching over fifteen thousand people across the country.