Villagers collect water at a dwindling watering hole amid drought in Banteay Meanchey province, Cambodia, in 2016 (Source: phnompenhpost.com) Hanoi (VNA) – Cambodia’s Ministry of Environment has told its rice farmers to refrain from plantingcrops as the country is in the midst of a drought heightened by recordtemperatures due to this year’s El Nino phenomenon.
Talking to Cambodia’s The Phnom Penh Postnewspaper, Neth Pheaktra, Spokesperson and Secretary of State for the Ministryof Environment, said temperatures are expected to peak in April and May and thatthe government is appealing to people not to plant during this period.
Many communities in 16 provinces around the Southeast Asian country havereported water shortages due to increased average temperatures – a starkreality for a nation more accustomed to dealing with floods than droughts.
The ministry has coordinated with the Ministry of Water Resources andMeteorology in distributing fertilisers and water to communities hit bydrought.
Meanwhile, the Mekong River Commission (MRC) Secretariat, which works tojointly manage the water resources of the river shared by member nationsCambodia, Laos, Thailand and Vietnam, said it is ready to support its membercountries, including Cambodia which is experiencing abnormally hightemperatures.
According to the Cambodian Ministry of Environment, the temperature in thecountry is likely to reach 40-42 degrees Celsius between April and May thisyear.
Higher temperatures associated with the El Ninophenomenon could lead to forest fires and water shortages, it said.
The MRC Secretariat said that along with lower agricultural productivity,people’s livelihoods and health could be affected this season.
According to the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation, about 75 percent ofcultivated land in Cambodia is used for rice farming and the country suppliesabout 3 percent of the world’s total global rice output. The El Nino phenomenonalso caused a serious drought in Cambodia in 2016 which was considered thecountry’s worst natural disaster in a century. –VNA
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