Arable land for agricultural production.

Govt seeks to preserve 4.5 million hectares of farmland

The Ministry of Agriculture is drafting a decree aimed at banning the use of agricultural and irrigated land for commercial construction, in a bid to preserve 4.5 million hectares of land for agricultural production over the next 30 years.
Minister of Agriculture and Forestry, Dr Phet Phomphiphak, told NA members this week that agriculture is under threat from development projects, and that more and more land is being used for construction purposes.
As a result, the ministry is drafting a decree to preserve land for crop cultivation, to safeguard the government’s food security strategy and enable sustainable agricultural production.
The ministry hopes to set aside 2 million hectares for rice cultivation, with the available area currently standing at 700,000 hectares, as well as a further one million hectares for the cultivation of other crops, of which 700,000 hectares are currently grown.
In addition, the ministry wants 700,000 hectares of land to be made available for livestock farming, with just 100,000 hectares in use at present. Another goal is for fruit to be grown on 800,000 hectares of land, with fruit trees currently grown on 600,000 hectares.
Extra land for crops would help to meet targets set in the national development agenda and resolutions adopted in the five-year agricultural, forestry and rural development plan for 2021-2025.
In the next six months, Dr Phet said the ministry will focus on increased food production to reduce the importation of unnecessary products and help curb the rise in food prices.
In particular, the ministry will attempt to boost the production of export products, such as sweetcorn, rice, coffee, tea, livestock and rubber.
Meanwhile, agriculture authorities have been told to reevaluate contract farming practices, including the ‘2+3’ model, in which farmers are responsible for providing land and labour, while investors provide seedlings, technical services, and markets.
Assessment will also be made of the ‘1+4’ contract farming system, in which people provide land, while investors are responsible for labour, seedlings, technical services, and markets.
Agriculture experts said Laos is a least developed country and as such has a great need for investment to drive economic growth and poverty reduction efforts.
Better city planning, more appropriate land allocation, and short- and long-term strategies are essential for the country to address land disputes and ensure the best use of land.

By Times Reporters
 (Latest Update June 23, 2022)