Promote ecological and smart agriculture in the Mekong Delta

On April 25, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development organized a workshop on "Technical consultation and implementation of projects to transform smart, sustainable and adaptive ecological agricultural systems to climate change in the mid- and coastal areas of the Mekong Delta region" (STAR-FARM project).

The project is funded by the European Union through the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Accordingly, the provinces of Dong Thap, Kien Giang, and Tra Vinh will benefit from the project, with the implementation period from 2023 - 2027, with a total funding of 4.2 million Euro.

At the conference, the STAR-FARM Project Management Board listened to representatives of domestic and foreign institutes, schools, organizations, and representatives of the Departments of Agriculture and Rural Development of Tra Vinh, Dong Thap, Kien Giang provinces..., presenting many opinions regarding the difficulties and challenges facing agricultural production due to climate change and rising sea levels.

The representative of FAO said that currently climate change causes many challenges in agricultural production activities of people in the Mekong Delta. To overcome, farmers need to change their practices and production methods, and the implemented project is an opportunity to do that. Hopefully, through this kick-off activity, the project management board will select the most suitable points to implement the project through the criteria.

According to Mr. Le Truong Son, the Director of the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection of Tra Vinh province, currently the province's agricultural production scale is still small, fragmented, production quality is not uniform, and products are still unable to be gathered when large quantities are requested.

At the same time, research into transferring science and technology to farmers is still slow, there have been no breakthroughs to quickly increase productivity, product quality, and value chain links are few and not yet popular. Unsustainable farming practices and habits have a negative impact on the environment, in which farmers' use of large amounts of chemical inputs such as chemical fertilizers, pesticides and saltwater intrusion have been causing major losses to the province's agricultural production.

Mr. Son proposed a project to support the province in building agricultural value chains of rice and peanuts, raising beef cattle and tiger shrimp, as well as white-legged shrimp, and sea crabs.

Mr. Tran Thanh Tam, the Director of the Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection of Dong Thap province proposed to support localities in building innovative solutions for ecological agriculture and models of practicing ecological agriculture.

At the same time, supporting young people and women to participate in the project. Disseminating sustainable production standards and ecological agricultural approaches, and building models for implementing sustainable business plans for participating members.

A representative of the STAR-FARM Project Management Board said that the selection of the implementation location is based on a number of criteria such as the characteristics of the mid- and coastal areas of the Mekong Delta, the diversity of the agricultural system, as well as the diversity of the vulnerable to climate change. In addition, factors such as ethnic minorities in the community, value chain development, related projects being implemented, participation of private organizations, as well as nature reserves and mangrove forests are also considered.

It is expected that experts and representatives of organizations will coordinate with local authorities to conduct field surveys and select 10 locations in the provinces of Tra Vinh, Dong Thap, and Kien Giang to deploy the activities of the project to support the development of ecological agriculture in the Mekong Delta region.

Among them, at least 24 farmer groups and cooperatives were supported to improve their capacity in management, production and business and market access. Supporting the establishment of cooperatives of youth, women and ethnic minorities. Supporting 15 small and medium agricultural enterprises to access green financial sources. Developing 3 support packages to develop innovative agricultural projects and ecological agricultural models. Building 3 models for key ecological agricultural products, supporting 8 startup models linked to sustainable value chains.

Mr. Nguyen Do Anh Tuan, the Director of the Department of International Cooperation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, requested project implementation units to coordinate in building typical agricultural production models, typical of the central and coastal regions of Mekong Delta. At the same time, there is a plan to disseminate and replicate models that adapt to climate and weather conditions, in accordance with production practices, creating sustainable livelihoods for people in the Mekong Delta region.

The project focuses on prioritizing research into sustainable food system transformation; ecological transformation in agricultural production systems, animal husbandry, animal and plant health, minimizing environmental degradation, protecting people's health.