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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.