UHDP's Response
 
 
 
 
 
Agroforestry / Sustainable Upland Farming
 
 

Traditional Upland farming - an uncertain future.
 
Struggling to survive in an increasingly degraded environment, the hilltribes of the Golden Triangle region have less freedom to practice traditional swidden agriculture as once lush tropical forests, naturally capable of regenerating the hill fields, are dwindling. Additionally, access to land that is adequate to support rotational farming is increasingly restricted.
 
 
Consequently, many upland fields are too small and degraded to provide adequate yields of important staples such as upland rice or certain cash crops (e.g.,field corn).
  

Sustainable options are needed for threatened
upland agriculture.
 
 

Many hilltribe farmers are creating contour strips
of pineapple and other crops with which to conserve
their precious soil.
  
UHDP is partnering with hilltribe farmers to determine viable options needed to attain a more sustainable approach to upland farming where land, forest and water resources are in short supply. Appropriate responses include soil conservation and improvement as well as crop diversification.
 
 

Planting viny legume cover crops among crop residues
as well as refraining from burning and intensive tillage
are ways to improve hill field soils.
  

Crop diversification in upland fields and orchards helps
to extend crop production and lessens the risk of complete
crop failure under adverse conditions
 
Agroforestry - growing crops and trees on the same land - helps upland farmers to generate food and income through the production of both agriculture and forest products. Certain useful forest crops (e.g., rattan, forest pepper, prickly ash) can be grown among field or orchard crops. Likewise, some shade-tolerant crops, such as tea and coffee, can be produced beneath trees. Native forest crops usually do not require irrigation, fertilizing or pest control.
  

The stems of native forest pepper are used to spice food
and can grow up longan and mango trees.

Bob Morikawa (Floresta) lifts a mature rattan vine in
an agroforest plot. Rattan, a viny palm,produces cane used for weaving and has edible shoots.
  

Coffee is commonly grown in forest or semi-forest conditions.
Backyard Agriculture
 
  Approximately 1/3 of the hilltribe residents of UHDP's focus area of 18 communities lack access to any farmland. Consequently, they are dependent on hiring out as seasonal farm labor on local plantations. Unfortunately such work and income is often infrequent. As a result, UHDP is working to help "landless farmers" supplement family food and income through backyard agriculture. However, challenges to backyard farming include very limited land, poor soil, shade and lack of water. So what might be done?
  

For many families in the uplands, the cramped spaces
around their homes is all the land they've got.
 

Backyard pig production can be quite profitable with
strong local demand for pork.
  
Viable backyard agriculture approaches include small-scale livestock production (mainly pigs and native chickens), catfish production in tanks, mushroom farming and gardening. Backyard gardening should include mixtures of both annual vegetables (e.g., beans, pumpkins, eggplants) and even more importantly, deep--rooted perennial vegetables and fruits that do not require much watering and bear throuqhout much of the year.
 

Although most productive during the warmer months,
backyard catfish production offers both food and income
potential for small spaces.
  

Mixtures of annual vegetables and deep-rooted,
perennial fruit and vegetable varieties increase
family food sufficiency.
 
 
Water and Sanitation
 
   Studies have shown that despite being located near water catchment areas, hilltribe communities tend to face water shortages. One of UHDP's primary objectives is to assist upland communities to develop their water resources for consumption, sanitation and hygiene as well as for backyard agriculture.
  

Many upland communities have developed gravity-fed
water systems with adequate means of water storage.
 

Family water storage tanks offer increased water
security, particularly during the dry season.
  

It is estimated that over the past decade the number
of sanitary family latrines in the UHDP focus area
has increased by at least 1/3
 
 
Women's and Gender Issues
 
As in many cultures, the relegation of gender roles in hilltribe society can limit the participation of women in certain capacities, such as in direct forms of community leadership. UHDP is partnering with upland communities to broaden gender understanding and to strengthen the participation of women in all levels of society.
    

Poverty and lack of citizenship make both hilltribe
women and children particularly vulnerable to exploitation.
 

The women of Suan Cha Palaung village involved in
long-range community planning.
  

Women and men attending a hilltribe gender issues
meeting at the UHDP center.
 
 
Citizenship and Related Rights
 
    In the UHDP focus area of 18 hilltribe communities, an estimated 2/3 of the residents still lack Thai citizenship. Large numbers of undocumented persons are also found throughout northern Thailand. UHDP is assisting affected hilltribe partners to obtain proper registration as well as to meet eligibility requirements related to requesting legal residence, citizenship and related rights. UHDP also supports the efforts of the Palaung and Kachin Tribal Networks.
  

A resident of Huai Makhliam Village displaying legal residence documents.
 

Assisting residents of Ban Mai Samakhi to process
official documents.
  

Cheering on the village team at the 4th Annual Palaung Soccer Tournament.
 
 
Micro-enterprise / Micro-finance
 

Tribal handicrafts supplement family incomes in several
UHDP focus communities.
  
With limited farmland and without many other viable options for employment, upland people must maximize income opportunities from backyard agriculture and other cottage industry. Micro-finance,managed by community members, can provide a needed financial boost towards establishing small family enterprises such as village stores and markets, livestock feed cooperatives and other backyard sources of supplemental income.
 

The means to sustainably produce and market agroforest products such as native forest pepper is essential for maintaining upland livelihoods.
  

Backyard seedling nurseries produce plants for
family farms or for local markets.
P.O.Box 43, Fang, Chiang Mai 50110 Thailand,
Phone: 66-53-473-221
E-mail:uhdp@loxinfo.co.th