Nguyen Thi Thu Huong, a 56-year-old rice farmer from Thanh Quoi commune in Viet Nam’s Mekong Delta, has traditionally followed age-old rice cultivation methods passed down through generations. However, the intensifying impacts of climate change, including more frequent floods, droughts, saltwater intrusion, and invasive pests such as the fall armyworm, have severely threatened crop yields and the livelihoods of farmers like Huong. Traditional coping strategies, including heavy reliance on chemical pesticides and dense seeding, have proven insufficient and, in some cases, worsened environmental and health risks. Across Asia and the Pacific, smallholder farmers dependent on monoculture systems like rice are similarly vulnerable, facing annual income losses of 20–40 percent in climate-sensitive regions such as the Mekong Delta and Ganges Basin.
Recognizing the limitations of traditional practices, Huong and her community have embraced an innovative, climate-adaptive approach supported by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). This initiative combines indigenous knowledge with modern ecological techniques, delivering hands-on training at Farmer Field Schools and implementing demonstration plots to encourage wider adoption. Farmers learn methods such as ecological pest management, alternate wetting and drying irrigation, and nature-based fertilization, which reduce chemical inputs, conserve water, and maintain stable yields. In Viet Nam, the use of pheromone traps, ducks for pest control, and drones to spray biopesticides has protected crops while supporting biodiversity, resulting in a 30 percent increase in net profit per hectare.
The benefits of these ecological approaches extend across the region. In Bangladesh, integrated biological control methods combining Trichoderma fungus, predatory mites, and Trichogramma wasps reduced fungal and insect damage in okra crops by 60–70 percent, minimizing reliance on chemical pesticides. In Nepal, tomato farmers working with Gandaki province’s Plant Protection Laboratory saw a 60–70 percent reduction in plant diseases by using Trichoderma viride, which simultaneously combats pathogens and enhances the plants’ immune response to pests. In Cambodia, FAO helped bridge research, field implementation, and policy by developing national guidelines on pesticide and biopesticide use.
By embedding ecological resilience into farming practices, these initiatives have equipped farmers across Asia and the Pacific with sustainable tools to cope with climate change. They have improved crop health, reduced input costs, and enhanced profits while preserving biodiversity. For Huong and others in Thanh Quoi commune, the transition to nature-based, climate-smart agriculture has fundamentally transformed their approach to farming, ensuring resilient, productive, and environmentally responsible food systems for the future.
