Valuing the role of living aquatic resources to rural livelihoods in multiple-use, seasonally-inundated wetlands in the Yellow River Basin of China, for improved governance

Supported by the CPWF, this two-year project titled “Valuing the role of living aquatic resources to rural livelihoods in multiple-use, seasonally-inundated wetlands in the Yellow River Basin of China, for improved governance” focused on linking the use of wetlands resources by local communities and value of wetlands ecosystem services with management implications for the riverine and coastal wetlands in Henan and Shandong provinces. A study on this Chinese situation of pursuing a rapid development agenda while recognizing the need to conserve critical wetland areas would provide insights on the issues and possible avenues for sustainable wetlands management that may be relevant to other developing countries

Natural Resource Endowments, Subsistence Agriculture, and Poverty in the Chhotanagpur Plateau

The Chhotanagpur Plateau in Eastern India lies on the so-called Tribal belt and is one of the poorest regions of India. Beginning in 1998, the Indian Statistical Institute in Kolkata and the International Rice Research Institute began research to examine the biophysical and socioeconomic factors constraining agricultural activity and household income in the region. This report provides an initial descriptive and quantitative analysis of the integrated biophysical and socioeconomic database constructed from this research. The report begins with brief overview of the geography and history of the study area, followed by descriptions of the main biophysical characteristics of the study area, such as climate, topography, soil, water availability, and the typology of land types in the area. The main cropping systems associated with each land type are identified. This research highlighted the importance of low scale variations in topography in explaining cropping systems. Part Two of the report reviews socioeconomic characteristics of the villages and of surveyed households. Key characteristics noted include the high incidence of poverty, the diversity of economic activities, and the small share of imputed household income derived from rice cultivation. The report concludes with a brief discussion of policy implications and avenues for future research in the study.Natural Resource Management; Rural Poverty; Rice Production; Subsistence Farming; Eastern India

Fisheries and aquaculture

Consumption of fish has increased rapidly over the past decades, particularly in Africa, and is likely to continue into the future (World Bank 2013). With a potential global shortfall in fish supply for direct human consumption of around 62 million metric tonnes by 2030, increasing attention is focused on the capacity of the global fish food system to meet demand (Hall and Schaffer 2015). Options for increasing the production of fish include wild capture fisheries and aquaculture production. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment report predicts that the geographic ranges of many global marine species will change, that marine biodiversity will reduce in sensitive regions, and that this will affect fisheries productivity. Small-scale fisheries in coastal and inland waterways may similarly decline in the face of a changing climate, and land-use change (Welcomme et al. 2010). In particular, it is believed that aquaculture, in view of its resilience and adaptability and diversity of species cultured, will emerge as an alternative source of livelihoods for many

Scoping study on natural resources and climate change in Southeast Asia with a focus on agriculture. Final report

Climate change / Natural resources / Environmental effects / Agroecology / Agricultural production / Crops / Cropping systems / Farming systems / Livestock / Fisheries / Food security / Water management / Economic aspects / Rural poverty / Policy / Nutrient management / South East Asia / Cambodia / Laos / Thailand / Vietnam / Myanmar / China / Greater Mekong Subregion / Tonle Sap / Yunnan

Natural Resource Endowments, Subsistence Agriculture, and Poverty in the Chhotanagpur Plateau

The Chhotanagpur Plateau in Eastern India lies on the so-called Tribal belt and is one of the poorest regions of India. Beginning in 1998, the Indian Statistical Institute in Kolkata and the International Rice Research Institute began research to examine the biophysical and socioeconomic factors constraining agricultural activity and household income in the region. This report provides an initial descriptive and quantitative analysis of the integrated biophysical and socioeconomic database constructed from this research. The report begins with brief overview of the geography and history of the study area, followed by descriptions of the main biophysical characteristics of the study area, such as climate, topography, soil, water availability, and the typology of land types in the area. The main cropping systems associated with each land type are identified. This research highlighted the importance of low scale variations in topography in explaining cropping systems. Part Two of the report reviews socioeconomic characteristics of the villages and of surveyed households. Key characteristics noted include the high incidence of poverty, the diversity of economic activities, and the small share of imputed household income derived from rice cultivation. The report concludes with a brief discussion of policy implications and avenues for future research in the study

Geographical Concentration of Rural Poverty in Bangladesh

This paper was presented at the dialogue on Mapping Poverty for Rural Bangladesh: Implications for Pro-poor Development. The dialogue was organised as part of CPD's ongoing agricultural policy research and advocacy activities with IRRI under the PETRRA project. The study reported geographical concentration of rural poverty in Bangladesh for 425 upazilas in 2000-01. The study measured and mapped incidence of poverty (using Headcount Index), intensity of poverty (using Poverty Gap Index) and severity of poverty (using Squared Poverty Gap Index). It has analyzed factors contributing to the spatial concentration of poverty. It is hoped that the findings of the study would be helpful in identifying target areas and priorities for agricultural R&D interventions and poverty reduction programmes.Poverty, Rural Poverty, Bangladesh

Natural Resource Endowments, Subsistence Agriculture, and Poverty in the Chhotanagpur Plateau

The Chhotanagpur Plateau in Eastern India lies on the so-called Tribal belt and is one of the poorest regions of India. Beginning in 1998, the Indian Statistical Institute in Kolkata and the International Rice Research Institute began research to examine the biophysical and socioeconomic factors constraining agricultural activity and household income in the region. This report provides an initial descriptive and quantitative analysis of the integrated biophysical and socioeconomic database constructed from this research. The report begins with brief overview of the geography and history of the study area, followed by descriptions of the main biophysical characteristics of the study area, such as climate, topography, soil, water availability, and the typology of land types in the area. The main cropping systems associated with each land type are identified. This research highlighted the importance of low scale variations in topography in explaining cropping systems. Part Two of the report reviews socioeconomic characteristics of the villages and of surveyed households. Key characteristics noted include the high incidence of poverty, the diversity of economic activities, and the small share of imputed household income derived from rice cultivation. The report concludes with a brief discussion of policy implications and avenues for future research in the study

CaWAT – A Catchment Water Allocation Tool For Integrated Irrigation And Aquaculture Development In Small Watersheds

Water resources development has seen little development in the vast rural areas of Sub-Sahara Africa (SSA) due to lack of investment, means of access and poor policy environment. In search of sustainable and efficient water resources development, participatory approach is widely accepted as a key strategy for water resources development and conservations in many SSA countries. To encourage bottom-up solutions for local water resources development, a Catchment Water Allocation Tool (CaWAT) was developed to aid rural water resources planning for agriculture in small watersheds. The tool is based on water balance accounting to examine water allocations among different users. It builds on the FAO AquaCrop plugin to simulate irrigation water requirement and crop productivity. It has a storage simulation module that models not only water balance but also fish production. Multiple catchment and on-farm management options are built in to enable comparisons of alternate scenarios. The model water tested in a small watershed in Southern Malawi. And the results provide interesting insight for integrated irrigation and aquaculture development using the available water and local water infrastructure investment options