Seed production and disaster risk management in 3 northern provinces of Phu tho – Yen bai – Lao cai. ©FAO: http://www.fao.org

1. SEED PRODUCTION AND DISASTER
RISK MANAGEMENT IN 3 NORTHERN
PROVINCES OF
PHU THO – YEN BAI – LAO CAI
Tran Minh Tri - National DRR Consultant
Maria Cristina Bentivoglio - FAO Programme
Officer on DRR

2. Content
I. Current Rice/Seed Production in the 3
Northern mountainous provinces
II. FAO Disaster Risks Reduction &
Climate Change Adaptation Actions in
the Northern Mountainous Region

3. I – Current Seed Production in the 3 Northern Mountain
Provinces
1. Data from surveys in the 3 provinces
2. Germination, purity and average yield of varieties seeds
supplied in the FAO project TCP/VIE 3202
3. Annual expenditure for seed subsidy. Policies for seed
secure and extension
4. Seed Production Groups – Current economic performance
5. Conclusion
6. Recommendation – Political, institutional and individual

4. Data the surveys
Phu Tho Yen Bai Lao Cai
Hybrids Varieties Hybrids Varieties Hybrids Varieties
Cost/ha (VND Mn) 12.5 12.08 10.45 10.45 8.15 6.71
Average yield (ton/ha) 5.5 5.0 5.0 4.7 5.5 – 6.0 5.2 – 3.5
Revenue (VND
Mn/ha)
23.65 25.0 20.0 25.85 24.75 – 30.0 33.8 – 49.0
Gross margin/ha
(VND Mn)
11.15 12.92 9.55 15.4 16.6 – 21.85 27.09 – 42.3
• Comments: At the same cultivating input for both hybrid and variety
- Almost no yield difference in average yield/ha
- Varieties have remarkably higher gross margin
- Economic efficiency of indigenous varieties in Lao Cai as hint for marketing.

5. Germination, Purity and Average Yield of Varieties Seeds’
Supplied under the FAO TCPVIE3202
Province Germination (%) Field purity (%)
Compared to
other seeds
Yield
(ton/ha)
PHÚ THỌ 93 93 Better 4.9
YÊN BÁI 92 97 Better 5
LÀO CAI 92 96 Better 5.2
Average 92 95 Better 5.0
Source: NOMAFSI
Comment from NOMAFSI: Cultivating with varieties could save up to 30% of input for
fertilizers
Question on how to secure high quality varieties seeds (policy, technical assistance for farmers)

6. Annual Expenditures for Seed Subsidy
Policy for Seed Source and Extension Service
Province Rice areas (ha) % of hybrid Subsidy per
ha (VND mn)
Total expenditure
(VND mn)
Phu Tho 72,000 43,200 (60%) 0.3 12,960
Yen Bai 39,622 23,773 (60%) 0.3 7,132
Lao Cai 27,000 21,600 (80%) 0.3 6,480
Comments:
- Huge annual budget spent for subsidy the hybrid seed
- Exposure to the risk of dependence to external supply (import)
- Extension activities suppressed: low salary paid to commune extensionist does
not stimulate his activities

7. SPG – Current Economic Performance
Cost per hectare (for the yield of 5.82 tons/hectare) in VND
- Production cost/hectare: 18,590,000 (I)
- Interest charge (1.3%/month) for 6 months: 1,450,020 (II)
Revenue/ha:
1. From immediate sales (At seeds selling price of VND 6.5 mn/ton)
- For seed: 5.82 tons x 65% x 6.5 mn/ton = VND 24,589,500 (III)
- For commercial grain: 5.82 tons x 35% x 5.5 mn/ton = VND 11,203,500 (IV)
- Revenue/ha (R1 = III + IV): VND 35.79 millions
- Gross margin/ha (A) = R1 – I = 17,203,000
2. From selling at price of VND 12 mn/ton in 6 months
- For seed: 5.82 tons x 65% x 12mn/ton = 45,396,000 (V)
- For commercial grains: 5.82 tons x 35% x 5.5 mn/ton = 11,203,500 (VI)
- Revenue/ha: (R2 = V + VI): 56,599,500
- Gross margin/ha (B) = R2 – I – II = 36,559,480 millions
Loss due to the lack of legal status and trading mechanism: (B) – (A) = approx. 19
millions

8. SPG – Problems/comment
• Problems:
• Lack of appropriate equipment for seed production:
harvesting, plucking, drying, storage => quality issue
• Lack of trading/marketing channel => economic disadvantage
• Lack of legal status impedes the financial access => economic
disadvantage
• Comment:
• Overcoming these problems should need the policy
adjustment from the provincial government

9. Conclusions I – Varieties as Solution for DRR
Advantages of varieties:
• Lesser cultivating input (30%)
• Higher suitability to impoverished land
• Better eating quality
• Higher marketability => higher margin
• Possibility for farmer to spare seed => Independence from
external supply
• Improve the farmers’ preparedness and their after disaster
resilient capacity

10. Conclusions II – Disadvantages of current seed policies
• Excessively invest in hybrid seed procurement
• Suppressing affect onto the extension system and advantages
of the traditional farming practices
• Generate the dependence from unstable (qualitatively and
quantitatively) outside seed procurement
• Influence detrimentally the preparedness of the farmers to the
disaster risk impacts and their resilient capacity

11. Recommendations - Political
• Rationalize the seed policy to ensure: food security and seed
security
• Encourage using the indigenous and varieties
• Cropping system
• Policy for fostering the Seed Production Groups
• Legal status
• Trading mechanism for maximizing farmers’ revenue

12. Recommendations - Institutional
• Strengthening the relations of SSCs – Extension Center (s) –
SPGs on a market basis (alliance form).
• Market-principle based relation between the provincial
authorities and Research Institute (NOMAFSI).
• Strengthening the extension system: technical and financial
capacities.
• Strengthening the SPGs: technical infrastructure, management
and marketing skill, financial instruments for
sustainable/profitable production

13. Recommendations - Farmers
• Building community awareness of “spare seed” as
on-spot measure of preparedness for disaster risk
management.
• Training on new/advanced cultivating techniques
using varieties
• Training on new cropping system, appropriate for the
locality
• Supply/grant the seeds every two years (WTO Rules)

14. II - FAO Disaster Risks Reduction & Climate
Change Adaptation Actions in the Northern
Mountainous Region

15. Government Priority areas on DRR
• strengthen preparedness, early warning and good database
management
• strengthen resilience of vulnerable communities to future
natural hazards and climate change threatening food security
• And improve capacity of international and national agencies
and organizations and support services for preparedness and
risk reduction through better coordination, communication and
training

16. Gov priorities
Coordination
under ONE UN
Technical assistance
provided by FAO
Under ONE UN plan II FAO assistance to the Gov of Vietnam

17.  Improve livelihoods and food security providing technical assistance for
preparedness and effective response to food and agriculture threats and
emergency in order to reduce vulnerability to future events
 Help communities to recover and improve their disrupted agriculture-based
livelihoods and rebuilding them better, strengthening their resilience through
agricultural development
FAO overall objective on DRR

18.  Disaster Preparedness
 Early Warning, Information System Management and Data quality
 Training and advocacy
 Disaster Response
 Damage assessment
 Resources mobilization and rapid response at national and local level
 Post Disaster Recovery
 Short term: needs assessment and data collection
 Medium term: implementation capacity building activities
 Long term (mitigation): technical assistance on agriculture production
 Partnerships and coordination mechanisms at central level
 MARD, CCFSC, NDMP, DMWG
FAO strategy and responsibility on agriculture and food security

19.  Disaster Preparedness
- Lack of: (1) Disaster risk management expertise (2) Info systems, mappings, early
warning activities (3) Research and assessment
- Need of: (1) trainings for equipment operating skill and forecasting (2) Good data
and good indicators and (3) Good participatory training
 Technical support in agriculture for DRR actions
- Late-sowing and spare the seedlings for additional transplanting upon late floods (for
Summer season)
- Early-sowing with the short-term varieties (for the Spring production season)
- Reservation of corn and vegetables seeds as substitute crops if the time remaining is
not sufficient for Summer rice production
- Need to start considering new alternative livelihoods and crop diversification
activities
- Reserve food for sustaining at least 5-days during the storm season
- Reserve “spare seeds”
Current situation on DRR actions in the Northern Mountainous
Region

20. FAO interventions in the one of most affected area of Vietnam:
The Northern Mountain Regions (NMR)
Project Title:
“Strengthening Capacities to Enhance Coordinated and Integrated Disaster Risk
Reduction Actions and Adaptation to Climate Change in Agriculture in the Northern
Mountain Regions of Viet Nam”
Duration: 2 years
Overall Budget: $450.000
Best case of FAO intervention

21. Project Overview
NMR will represent a “pilot area” for the development of new DRR activities
thorough the country’s most affected provinces (Yen Bai, Lao Cai, Phu
Tho)
FAO will support MARD and CCFSC from central to commune level to
strengthen capacities for DRR through:
• Preparedness based-agriculture
• Early warning and Info-System development (e.g. Viet-Info)
• Risk prone areas mapping for each province with contribution of local people
• Training for local staff on Early Warning and Decision making
• Improve coordination and communication from provincial to national level
• Provide technical assistance for food production and livelihoods
strengthening

22. Overall Objective
...to strengthen the institutional systems and processes for
disaster risk reduction and preparedness in order to reduce
vulnerability to climate extremes and strengthen resilience to
climate change impacts...

23. Expected Outcome 1
Outcome 1: Strengthened institutional, technical and policy
frameworks and coordination for DRR and CCA in agriculture
at all levels
Output 1.1: Assess the institutional needs and analyze the technical gaps and
key issues in agriculture disaster risk reduction and climate change
adaptation at provincial level
Output 1.2: Improve technical capacity of local institutions, farmers’ groups
through field training on community mobilization, community centered
disaster risk management in agriculture and developing local risk reduction
measures, seed production (e.g. irrigation canals), storage (drying court,
warehouse, house for seed storage, etc.) and marketing
Output 1.3: Formulate guidelines and recommendations for integrating climate
change in food and agriculture perspectives in the northern mountain
region

24. Expected Outcome 2
Outcome 2: Strengthened institutional support services to
enhance coordinated and integrated DRR actions and CCA at
the provincial level (3 pilot provinces)
Output 2.1: Improved seed production, storage and maintenance system at all
levels in place to enhance preparedness and effectively respond to climate
related extremes in the mountain region
Output 2.2: Enhanced capacity for developing localised early warning systems
and weather/climate information application for risk management and
adaptation at the provincial level

25. Expected Outcome 3
Outcome 3: Improved database management, spatial information
products to facilitate local level DRR actions and strengthen
resilience of vulnerable communities to climate change
impacts
Output 3.1 – Developed effective database management system in order to
monitor impacts of natural disasters in agricultural and food security and
streamlining the communication between district and central institutions.
Output 3.2 – Developed spatial decision support products based on the
hazards, local vulnerability and risks at the provincial level

26. Expected Outcome 4
Outcome 4 – Location specific community based disaster risk
reduction, climate change adaptation and awareness actions
prioritized and implemented at the community level
Output 4.1: Location specific technologies for DRR and climate change
adaptation within the agriculture sector identified and screened and the
CBDRM process facilitated to prioritize community actions
Output 4.2: Location specific technologies for DRR and climate change
adaptation within the agriculture sector implemented through a
participatory learning by doing process at the community levels

27.  Strengthen needs assessment mechanism not only during response but during
preparedness phase in order to link DRR to agriculture development process
 Build capacity for the transfer of technologies and technical skills to development
of capacities for coordination, policy analysis and exchange of information and
learning to integrate DRM and perspective poverty reduction in their projects
 Support research of disaster impacts on poverty and how poverty affects
vulnerability especially related to the emerging climate change challenges
 And reduce dependence of farmers on external seed suppliers, improving
capacity of local institutions and improving systems for planning of seed
production and use
Conclusion and Lessons learned from NMR
experiences

28. Thank You!