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Rice production and social dynamics on the Joncs plain in southern Vietnam: key elements for a new approach to agricultural extension. |
Cahiers Agricultures. Volume 6, Number 5, 111-8, Septembre-Octobre 1997, Agricultures des deltas
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 Résumé
Article gratuit
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Author(s) : Yuna Chiffoleau, Fabrice Dreyfus |
Summary : Since 1975, agriculture in Tan Lap, situated to the north of the Joncs plain, has been shaped by population influxes : the combination of farming techniques brought from different areas has enabled this hostile environment to be developed. The intensification of rice production has led to the emergence of new agroecological constraints : salinization and rats (in the summer and autumn) are two problems that have developed since the start of the 1990s. Due to its economic importance, a second crop is still taken each year, despite variable results. Many families are in debt and this weakens the national banking system which is in the process of being establishing. Solving the crisis will only be possible through collective action: smallholders have understood this and are starting to organize themselves, although somewhat clumsily, and tensions between smallholders in the community and between smallholders and local authorities are growing. Development agencies, now prevalent in the area, are causing confusion by sending out a range of different messages. More appropriate agricultural extension services, based on established group dynamics and on the generally accepted need for collective action, would be of greater assistance to the smallholders of Tan Lap. A new role for agricultural extension workers and a different type of training should be developed. |
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