The ASFN 6th Conference2 June, 2015, 16:15-17:30

Parallel 3: Management and Governanceof Dynamic Forest Landscape

Mapping a full cycle of swidden cultivation in themountains of Myanmar and Laos:

Lessons learned from long-term monitoring of swiddencultivation in one Karen and one Khmu village

Takeda, ShinyaGraduate School of Asia and African Area Studies,

Kyoto University

Swidden farming is found throughout the mountains ofmainland Southeast Asia; however, there is a currentpreference for other land-use systems. The recent trendtoward a market economy has forced the people and forestsin the mountains to undergo various changes as theyintegrate into the world market. They have been impactedby the enclosure movement called the Land and ForestAllocation Program, the expansion of the cultivation of cashcrops such as maize and Para rubber trees, the increase inlogging concessions, and re-afforestation aimed at industrialwood resources.

Introduction

Khmu village,Viangkham district,Louang Phabang province,Lao PDR

Karen village, Toungoo district,the Bago division, Myanmar

Research sites

Inle Lake

YANGON

•MYANMAR

the Bago mountains

Bago Yoma, Swidden Farming and Karen Area

•After the colonization of LowerBurma in 1853, reserved forestswere established by the colonialgovernment in the Bagomountains (Bago Yoma), thehomeland of the Karen swiddencultivators.

•Swidden farming was banned toprotect teak forests for long-termcommercial exploitation.

•YANGON

•MYANMAR

•Karen areas were demarcatedwhere they have been allowed tofreely practice swidden farming.

Bago Yoma, Swidden Farming and Karen Area

the Bago mountains

•Cutting the field January - March •Burning the field April

•Taungya in rainy season July •Harvest of upland rice November

Bambusa polymorpha (chataungwa)Bambusa tulda ( thaiwa )

8Livelihood: remoteness and self-sufficiency

•Swidden farming and livelihood

•9

10Bambusa polymorpha(ChataungWa)

11

12

①2002 ②2003 ③2004 ④2005 ⑤2006

⑥2007 ⑦2008 ⑧2009 ⑨2010 ⑩2011

relocation of the village

bamboo flowering

15Total area ofswidden plots (ha)

Number ofswidden plots

Average plotsize（ha）

Average fallowperiods (years)

①2002 161.46 60 2.69 17.9

②2003 141.15 66 2.14 15.1

③2004 179.91 75 2.40 12.8

④2005 196.88 73 2.70 13.0

⑤2006 96.06 56 1.72 11.9

⑥2007 162.73 72 2.26 12.4

⑦2008 166.34 77 2.16 11.4

⑧2009 149.81 71 2.11 13.9

⑨2010 146.41 62 2.36 13.6

⑩2011 56.62 68 0.83 11.4

relocation ofthe village

bambooflowering

Current year taungya, young fallow and old fallow

Nyein Chan et.al., 2013. Forest Ecology and Management,304

Above-ground biomass accumulation

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

1 5 10 15 20 25 30 Oldforest

Aver

age

dry

biom

ass

(Mg/

ha)

Fallow age (years)

ClimberUnderstoreyDead bambooLive bambooTree

Above-ground biomass accumulation

Ln (y) = 2.439+0.629 Ln (x)(R2 = 0.721, P<0.001)

- c.35-years to naturalteak-bearing forests

- Faster than otherfallows in NorthernThai & NW. Vietnam

Nyein Chan et.al., 2013. Forest Ecology and Management,304

Suckers/rhizomes and coppicing – important regeneration

strategies

Transition in swidden land use

Transition of indigenous uses

0

20

40

60

80

100

120

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

% o

f tot

al H

Hs

Year

Series1

Series2

Series3

Series4

2005 – Village move to new place near to road2010 – Private plantation nearby

Nyien Chan.2015. Ethnic groups, transition in their indigenoususes of forest resources and current trend in fallow forest recovery

swidden paddy

Noswidden

Teaktaungya

1=2002

Community forest ?

November 2014Teak regeneration in swidden field

Research Site

•S village in Luang PrabangProvince

•Khmu people

•84 household opened 96 fieldsin 2005

•82 household opened 96 fieldsin 2006

隣村借地

焼畑地

Swidden farming 2005-2011

•Ｍａｉｚｅ Ｖｉｅｔｎａｍ Ｔｈａｉｌａｎｄ

Ｙｏｕｎｇ ｆａｌｌｏｗ ｗｉｔｈ Ｙａ Ｋｈｉ Ｌｏ

‘the end of cheap food’(The Economist 6 December 2007)

High food prices and the food crisis- experiences and lessons learned, FAO 2009

Dec 2012, new road was constructed !

MyanmarKaren swidden cultivation(2002～2011 10 years）

LaosKhmu swidden cultivation(2005～2011 7 years）

Village area 4,973.94ha ATotal are of swidden 161.46ha BPotential fallow period 30.8years (A/B)Average fallow periods 12 years

1,673.88ha A143.65ha B11.7years (A/B)

4 years

Comparison of swidden cultivation system in Karen and Khmu village

maizegoat, pig, cattle, buffalo

(cassava production for feed)paper mulberry, lac,

agarwood,para rubber

Sesame, cotton,chili

commercial crop productive fallow commercial crop productive fallow

continuousupland farming

Para rubberplantation

small paddy field teak plantation

subsistence upland rice production

wage labor

charcoal andbamboo

Consequences of Myanmar’s reintegrationinto the world……

Swidden agriculture has experienced drastictransformation in to other diverse market-orientedland use types. People living close to roads tendto develop market-oriented farming practices.

Intensive plantations is another emerging driverof the rapid transformation of swidden fields.

Out migration; work away from home village.....

A case study in Matupi, southern Chin State, Myanmar.(Nyein Chan & Shinya TAKEDA. 2015. Can Wa-U (Amorphophallus spp.) cultivation be an

alternative livelihood option for swidden cultivators in the course of swidden transformation?)

• Extent of swidden transformation in T village

27

0,0

10,0

20,0

30,0

40,0

50,0

010203040506070

Are

a (h

a)

No.

of h

ouse

hold

s (H

Hs)

Year

No. of HHsArea (ha)

(a)

Swidden transformations and rural livelihoods

Cash crops have often improved livelihoods butcomplete specialization for the marketincreases vulnerability. (Cramb 2009)

Positive market incentives and supportivegovernment policies are better thanstandardized, top-down directives.

Swidden farming plays a key role in 1) ensuringlivelihood safety of local people against marketfluctuations and 2)conserving biodiversity.

Swidden + Paddy FieldsSmall Scale Forest Management

vs

Large Scale Reforestation / Deforestation ?

⇒ Land policy

Consequences of Myanmar’s reintegration into theworld……and community livelihoods andenvironment conservation.

•30