Post on 19-Jul-2020
Upland-lowland Linkages, Poverty Reduction, and Sustainability: Perspectives from Rice
Landscapes of South-east Asia
Sushil Pandey, H Bhandari and H GurungInternational Rice Research Institute
Presentation Outline
• Background to upland-lowland linkage
• Major dimensions of upland-lowland linkage
• Rice landscape management
• Ingredients of an integrated approach
• Implications
Uplands
• Approx 900 million ha (slope > 8%) in Asia
• Approx 30% of the Asian poor
• Largely outside the mainstream development
Lowlands
• Main rice bowl of Asia (>130 million ha of rice)
• Green revolution
• Rapid economic growth
• Mildly to steeply sloping
• Good to poor soils
• Sub-humid to humid environments
• Short to long growing season
• Shifting to permanent cultivation
• Sole to mixed cropping
• Subsistence to market-orientation
DIVERSITY: A main feature of Asian uplands
Upland characteristics
• Remote
• Fragile
• Diverse
• Marginalized
Upland concerns
• Poverty
• Food insecurity
• Environmental degradation
Incidence of poverty in Vietnam (%)
Vietnam 58.1 37.4 28.9Northern Upland 78.6 58.6 43.9Red River Delta 62.9 28.7 22.4Central Highlands 70.0 52.2 51.8
1993 1998 2002
Ethnic groupKinh 55.1 31.7Hmong 100 91.8Muong 89.6 80.6Nung 91.8 72.0Tay 81.3 63.8Dao 88.5 100.0Others 90.0 75.8
Luang Prabang
Luang Prabang
Luang Prabang
Luang Prabang
Oudomxay
Oudomxay
Luang Namtha
Phongsaly
Phongsaly
Province
94Vieng Thong
88Xam Tay
82Xieng Kho
89Phonxay
80Houn
92Na Mo
90Vieng Phouka
83May
96Samphanh
% PovertyDistrict
Poverty in selected northern districts of Laos
Source: Poverty Assessment Report, ADB (2001).Source: ADB poverty report (2001)
“Minority” is the majority of the poor.
Limitedproduction for market
LowincomeLand
degradation
Low foodproductivity
Foodinsecurity
Intensivecultivation of fragile land
Paradigm shifts about upland-lowland linkage
• Isolated uplands
• Limited contact
• Weak economic linkage
• Some resource extraction
Largely unlinked
Paradigm shifts about upland-lowland linkages
• Isolated uplands
• Limited contact
• Weak economic linkage
• Some resource extraction
• Resource extraction –the dominant mode
• Recognition of benefits to lowlands
• Lowland centric
Largely unlinked
One-way link
Paradigm shifts about upland-lowland linkages
• Isolated uplands
• Limited contact
• Weak economic linkage
• Some resource extraction
• Resource extraction –the dominant mode
• Linkages oriented towards resource extraction
• Recognition of benefits to lowlands
• Lowland centric
• Poverty reduction
• Equitable growth
• Environmental services
• Upland comparative advantage
• Still somewhat lowland centric
Largely unlinked
One-way link
Recognition of two-way
linkages
Upland
Lowland
Biophysical
• Water• Soil/nutrient
Economic
• Niche product• Labor• Market
Social
• Migration
• Social networks
Political
• Decision making
• Policy
Schematic resource flow between upland & lowland
Dimensions of economic linkages
• Flow of traded commodities/servicesunprocessed products
Tourism
• Managed and semi-managed resource flows
Natural and managed resource flows
water, soil, nutrients, hydropower
Semi-managed
Environmental services
• Human resource flow
Migration to lowland
• Social transfers and public sector investment flow
Dynamic factors influencing the linkages
• Population increase
• Commercialization and market development
• Globalization
• Tourism
• Technology
• Infrastructure development
• Land tenure changes
• Environmental awareness
• Decentralization and local empowerment
• Increased voice of upland communities in decision making
Potential negative consequences of commercialization on uplands
• Increased vulnerability due to market exposure
• Erosion of traditional coping mechanisms
• Reduced role of state
• Over-exploitation of products and resources
• Specialization and loss of diversity
Emerging conflicts in resource use
• Conflicts between upland and lowland
Decrease water quantity (domestic and irrigation)
Decrease water quality (pollution due to chemical)
Increase flooding, sedimentation and property damage
Uphill migration and settlement
Property rights claim and demand for compensation by upland people
• Conflicts between people and state
Government restricting rights to use land and forest
Communities demanding rights to use land and natural resources
Rice landscape management: an approach to benefit from upland-
lowland linkage
Green landscapes and food-secure households
IRRI’s strategy for upland research
Rice production systems characteristics
• Population density
• Market access
• Lowland endowment
Upland rice systems in transition
HighLow
Type 2 Continuousrice-based
Type 4 Intensivecash-based
Type 1 Traditionalslash-and-burn
Type 3 Extensiveperennial-based
Low
High
Population pressure
Market access
Mar
ket
acce
ssGood
Poor
Type 2
Production for market in uplands
(Limited area of upland rice)
Type 3
Production for market in uplands
(None or limited area of upland rice)
Type 1Upland rice widely
grown
Type 4None or limited area of
upland rice
Low High
Lowland endowment
Typology based on market access and lowland endowment
Encourage production for market
RaiseincomeLand
conservation
Raise foodproductivity
(Land & labor)
Improve foodsecurity
Encourageless intensiveuse of fragile
land
Entry point
“Income growth with household
food security”
The Yunnan Experience
1.0
1.2
1.4
1.6
1.8
2.0
1990 1994 1998 2002 2006
Year
Yie
ld (t
/ha)
Upland rice yield in Lancang, Yunnan
5
10
15
20
25
1990 1994 1998 2002 2006
Year
Are
a (0
00ha
)
Upland rice area in Lancang, Yunnan
• Higher-yielding upland rice systems
• Food secure households
• Diversified systems with cash components
• Less-intensive use of fragile sloping lands
Outcome of Changes in Yunnan
Effects of an expansion of lowland rice area on livelihood activities of upland farmers in Laos
Source: Troesch (2003).
Total number of respondents : 37
3More time for working as wage labor
8Expansion of paper mulberry plantation
11More time for trading
16Stopped upland rice cultivation
19Increased livestock production and fish farming
19Better food security
24More cash crop are grown
% of respondentsEffects
Ingredients for an integrated approach
• Technology
• Development policy
• Institutions
• Environmental Policy
Ingredients for an integrated approach (Cont…)
Technology
• Emphasis on productivity enhancement
Technology…
• Technology that utilizes comparative
advantage for productivity enhancement
Low-intensity land use in steep slopes
Investments to improve productivity in lower slopes
“Basket of options”
Ingredients for an integrated approach (Cont…)
Development Policy
• Income generation
• Safety nets
• Conservation
Development policy and resource conservation
• Direct effect : Returns to conservation
• Indirect effect : Land use changes
• Price of output
• Returns to agriculture
• Input subsidy
Fertilizers
Credit
• Transportation and marketing
Development policy ….
Development policy ….
• Tenure security and investment
• Ownership (private and communal)
• Tenure security and legal title
(cost of enforcement)
• Legal title
• Access to credit
• Land market
• Evolution of property rights
Ingredients for an integrated approach (Cont…)
Institutions
• Increased participation/decentralization
• Promoting participatory planning and resource utilization
• Strengthening the community processes for conflict resolution and
empowerment of community
Ingredients for an integrated approach (Cont…)
Environmental Policy
• Incorporation of ES into development strategy
• Enforceable regulation
• Economic benefit to land-users
• PES – but this should ultimately generate economic benefit to the
local land-users (win-win)
Implications
• Analysis of products, services and resource flows that link upland and lowland
Quantification off-site costsPatterns of changes, conditioning factors and
implications
Analysis:
• Micro impact of macro policy changes
Integration of macro, meso, and micro impact into a common framework
Design of safety nets for the poor
Implications…
• Development and promotion of technologies
landscape approach
diversity of options
productivity-environmental services complementarity
Technology:
• Inclusion of environmental services as a part of development strategy.
• Public investments in environmental services
• Establishing enabling conditions for enhanced community participation/decision making on resource use
Implications …
Policy making
Fuller exploitation of complementarity between upland and lowland is critical for an inclusive, equitable and sustainable development. Achievement will, however, depend critically on direct public investment, institution building, and policy reforms for creating enabling conditions.