Cambodia Rice: Japan Offers Support for Farmers in three Tonle Sap provinces

Cambodia Rice: Japan Offers Support for Farmers in three Tonle Sap provinces

The Japan International Cooperation Agency pledged US$4.4 million on yesterday to help improve the productivity and income of farmers in areas along the Tonle Sap lake in Battambang, Pursat and Kampong Chhnang provinces.

Yasujiro Suzuki, chief representative of JICA Cambodia, said at signing ceremony that the JICA-sponsored project would help the Cambodian government reach its goal of boosting rice exports to 1 million tonnes by 2015.

San Vanty, undersecretary of state at the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, said that the project – which will focus on agriculture production techniques, seed quality and irrigation – would target 30 communes in Battambang province, four in Pursat and two in Kampong Chhnang.

“In the near future, agricultural productivity and income of farmers in the target areas will be improved through collaboration and implementation of this project,” he said. The project is to commence in September and last for four and a half years.



Cheam Chan Sophorn, director of the Battambang provincial agriculture department, said he hoped that by the end of the JICA project, the province would be able to “double or triple the amount of rice for export to regional and international markets”.



Meanwhile, farmers living in the three target provinces said yesterday that they were concerned about this year’s ongoing drought.

“I am concerned about not having enough water to supply to my rice seedlings this year ... because of drought and a lack of irrigation systems,” said Kuch Veng, a farmer from Krakor district in Pursat province.

Tan Soksan, a farmer in Kampong Chhnang’s Rolea Phear district, agreed that it had been difficult to grow rice this year due to water shortages.

“I and other farmers in my village have serious concerns about the lack of rains,” he said, and some rice crops had died due to lack of water.

Lay Pisith, deputy director of the Pursat provincial agriculture department, said that officials in Krakor and Bakan districts have been forced to manually pump water into their ricefields in order to counter the effects of the drought.

Ngan Nany, director of the agriculture department in Kampong Chhnang province, said yesterday that recent rains had helped to improve the situation. “We hope that the rice seedlings of our farmers will not have any more problems,” he said. Source: MAFF

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Cambodia Rice: Japan wants to test their rice seed in Cambodia

Cambodia Rice: Japan wants to test their rice seed in Cambodia

Coordinators in Rice crop Research Center in Japan showed a purpose that they want to cooperate with MAFF and to test on Japanese rice seed to apply in Cambodia. Top officer of MAFF got this idea to consider.

Mr. Tosiyoki Maahara, director of SOEI CORPERATION Co, Ltd and PLANT GENOME’s spokesman told Mr. Chann Sarun, Minister of MAFF on March, 16th that in be haft of a coordinator in PLANT GENOME center which is a Japanese Rice crop Research Center, he aimed to cooperate with Cambodia in Japanese rice seed testing in order to participate in promoting and raising up the agricultural field in Cambodia, especially rice crop. In addition, his company will cooperate with Japanese Rice crop Research Center to carry out the research and experiment of Japanese rice seed in Cambodia by utilization of Japanese money package in term of ODA Mekong- Japan in future.

MAFF’s officer told Raksmey Kampuchea that a meeting in office of ministry was welcomed warmly by minister of MAFF, especially Japanese’s focusing in agricultural field in Cambodia. The minister got a Japanese officer’s request to consider, to check the reality result for co-cooperate with specialization sectors in Cambodia. The minister also told the guests that in past time in Cambodia territory used to have Japanese rice seed testing by Vietnamese company in Arng Yang province which its result was high and were fully brought by company.

The minister also confirmed that Cambodia has rice seed researching center too which can guarantee the technical seed experiment that has laboratories in province, has agricultural development communities in base for to join this work practice.

Japanese officer expressed the pleasantness to the minister’s response and pleasure for the ministry’s invitation that want him to visit in Cambodia Development and Research Institute.

Source: Maff Cambodia

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