IN THE FIELD - Making a living from forests in Indonesia

(in-country visits by ACIAR’s research program managers)

 

In April, ACIAR’s Forestry Program manager, Mr Tony Bartlett, visited Indonesia to see first-hand the progress made from ACIAR teak-related research, and to help set up a new project. Tony met some local farmers in the Gunungkidul District of Yogyakarta Province who have been, and will be, involved in the agroforestry research...

ACIAR has supported research on teak agroforestry systems in the Gunungkidul District since 2007. A new forestry project will again work in this region, extending the research on enhancing people’s livelihoods through integrating the production of teak with the production of non-timber forest products. The aim is to enable the farmers to get a more regular source of income from these agroforestry systems.

The farmers in this region devote about 10% of their land to growing teak, often in parcels of less than 0.5 hectares, and teak contributes about 12% of their total household income. Much of the teak goes into producing furniture and carvings, contributing to a global industry valued at around AUD 130 billion.

Pak Citro, teak forester extraordinaire
(photograph by Tony Bartlett)

I met with Pak Citro, of Sokoliman village in Gunungkidul District, who is one of the village elders. He began planting teak back in 1964 when he was 20 and working for the Forestry Department. He planted some seedlings around his house despite the fact that at that time it was illegal for farmers to cut any teak trees, even if they were growing on their own land. He and other villagers continued to plant teak because there had been so much deforestation that the local streams no longer had enough water to meet their household and farm needs. Over the years, he has used his teak trees to pay for the education of his seven children, and now at the age of 70 he sees his teak trees as his pension. In the past when he sold trees he used the money to buy more land to plant more teak. He has seven trees left standing from his 1964 plantings (50 year-old trees) and explained that he’s been offered Rp 27million ($3500) for two of these trees, but has not yet agreed to sell them. He said he was very happy to participate again in an ACIAR project. He had already learned a lot about how to improve the quality of his teak trees, from the thinning and pruning research of the previous ACIAR project—and improved quality means higher prices from log buyers.

Farmer harvesting garut from teak forest
(photograph by Tony Bartlett)

I also visited Karangasem village, where I met members of the Sedyo Lestari HKm Farmer Group and saw where they were growing a medicinal tuber (garut, or arrowroot) under 7-year-old teak. The plants are being grown on 37 hectares of community forest land, which they manage on behalf of the government and share the returns 60:40 (community:government). This village is led by a woman, Ibu Endang Sri Sumiartini, who is encouraging the women to work together as a community to process and market products like garut and local honey (manu). The garut tuber is traditionally used to cure diarrhoea and eczema as well as to lower fevers and stimulate breast milk. This community has also established a small sawmill and furniture-making business, where they process timber from their own land, and from the community forest when they can.

The new ACIAR project will work with these locals and others, to see how integrating the production of teak and non-timber forest products can be improved. It will include activities related to strengthening farmer-run small businesses that are processing and marketing non-timber forest products.

Tony (right) with stakeholders at the new project’s inception meeting in Yogyakarta
(photograph by Tony Bartlett)

Further information: ACIAR project FST/2012/039 Development of timber and non-timber forest products production systems for improvements of smallholders’ livelihoods in Indonesia

(Written by Tony Bartlett, ACIAR’s Forestry Research Program Manager)

 

Free-flowing fish for food security

Everything is going swimmingly for an ACIAR project in Laos, investigating ways to allow fish to move freely between the Mekong River and nearby floodplains.  The first ever fishway (a structure allowing fish to move through, around or over barriers) for Mekong species in Laos has just been built using know-how from ACIAR-funded research.

Fishway construction in Laos
(photograph by Jim Holmes)

Fish movement across Mekong floodplains is currently blocked or limited by thousands of irrigation regulators (weirs and flood gates) put in place for flood control and irrigation purposes. This has led to a decline in fish populations because they are denied access to vital spawning and nursery habitat.

The Mekong floodplains are vital spawning and nursery habitat
(photograph by Jim Holmes)

The impact has been felt not only by the fish, but by Lao fishermen relying on their catch for both food and income.

Because different fish species have varying swimming abilities, the research has focused on learning about the behaviour of Mekong species, then using that information to design fishways.

The fishway just built will help fish to move between the Mekong River and the Pak Peung wetlands.

Dr Oudom Phonekhampheng explains how the fishway works
to Australian Ambassador to Laos, Ms Lynda Worthaisong.
(photograph by Stephanie Rajalingam)

The Australian Ambassador to Laos, Ms Lynda Worthaisong, recently visited the project site and was impressed. “This project is unique in the region, and takes advantage of research and technology to build a functional fish passage, which is quite a significant construction effort.”

She said the fishway will play a vital role in ensuring food security and boosting the economy of the region.  

“It will mean that a lot of people in this area have access to more fish...which is so important for nutrition and other reasons.”

Fisheries experts discuss the fishway construction with Lynda Worthaisong.
(photograph by Stephanie Rajalingam)

“We’re really pleased to have been able to support this project and look forward to seeing it being completed soon.”

Hard at work at constructing a Mekong fishway
(photograph by Jim Holmes)

Now that the fishway is built, the researchers can assess how well it works this wet season in a real life situation. The $2.2 million project has been running since 2010 and final results will be determined over the next two years as the fishway is put to the test. Once the team has demonstrated its effectiveness, they hope to replicate it over many floodplains along the Mekong (with the help of donor agencies, including AusAID).

The project also has an Australian component. The NSW Department of Primary Industries are looking at fish passages in the Murray-Darling Basin. There are some striking similarities between the Mekong and Murray-Darling Basins: both drain a similar geographical area and rely on regular flooding to maintain fisheries productivity. So, the results of the Laos research will hopefully have flow-on benefits not only for the local fish and folk, but also for Australia.

Further information: ACIAR Project FIS/2009/041

(Written by Dr Wendy Henderson, ACIAR Communications)

A scholarship would be Allwright

Applications are now open for ACIAR's John Allwright Fellowships, part of the Australia Awards program.

The Australian Government's Australia Awards program offers the next generation of global leaders from Australia and overseas high-quality education and professional development experiences that enable them to contribute to the development of their countries.

Norah Omot, former John Allwright Fellow, now a Director of Enabling Environments for NARI (PNG). Nora is pictured with team members workshopping ideas on marketing, social economics, impact assessments, and work monitoring.
(photograph by Paul Jones)

Eyes wide open: Australian vet student experiences the challenges of keeping healthy livestock in Laos

Early this year, Emma Roffey, a vet science student from University of Sydney had a rewarding and eye-opening experience in northern Laos, investigating an active disease outbreak in cattle and water buffalo. She visited 5 villages as part of Australian–Lao collaborative research aiming to reduce poverty through improved livestock health, production and marketing.

Emma vaccinating buffalo in Laos
(Image courtesy of DLF Staff)

20 for CIFOR

In 1993 Jurassic Park was only in 2D, jeggings were simply called “leggings”, and the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) was established. It’s now 20 years later; dinosaurs come in multiple dimensions; and fashion trends remain questionable. Since its inception, CIFOR has made a significant impact and contribution to the global forestry research agenda.

CIFOR headquarters in Bogor, Indonesia

CIFOR was established as a type of ‘centre without walls’, allowing many countries and research teams to collaborate together on concerns about the massive destruction of tropical forests.

Forestry research leader visits Australia

Gorothy Gibson,
Landscape and Biodiversity officer,
examines a teak plantation in PNG
(photo by Paul Jones)

ACIAR representatives are greeting the Director General of the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), Dr Peter Holmgren, as he arrives in Australia’s capital this Sunday evening.

ACIAR’s Chief Executive Officer, Dr Nick Austin, and Forestry Program Manager, Mr Tony Bartlett, will be accompanying the delegation.

Dr Holmgren is in Canberra to open the Institute of Foresters of Australia’s national conference and is using the visit as an opportunity to meet colleagues in research and development agencies, policy makers and industry representatives.

Why agricultural research matters - the aid perspective

An argument for agricultural research

Extending agricultural productivity is an important catalyst of broader economic growth. The benefits of investment in agricultural research can be substantial, as demonstrated by growth in Australian agriculture over the past four decades. Multifactor productivity growth (growth in output relative to the combined contributions of inputs) in Australian agriculture between 1974–75 and 2003–04 averaged 2.8% a year.

Productivity growth has accounted for the entire increase in output by the agricultural sector over the last thirty years and has produced sizeable benefits–an estimated productivity dividend of just over $170 billion (page 115 of 'Trends in Agriculture' Productivity Commission Research Paper 2005).