Training program on “Climate Change Adaptation in Rice-Shrimp Production”

On October 27-28, 2024, the Research Institute for Climate Change (DRAGON-Mekong) - Can Tho University, in collaboration with the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Ca Mau Province, held a training program on "Climate change adaptation in rice-shrimp production" in Thoi Binh district, Ca Mau Province. The activity is part of the "Climate Change Adaptation in Ca Mau" project, which is a 12-month (from Dec, 2023 to Dec, 2024) collaboration between the DRAGON-Mekong Institute and the Archer Daniels Midland Group (ADM in Vietnam). The training program's goal is to help local communities enhance their production capacity so that they can better adapt to climate change.

Experts from Can Tho University, Ca Mau Province Fisheries Department, Ca Mau Province Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection, representatives of Thoi Binh District People's Committee, Thoi Binh District Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, and representatives of Tri Phai and Tan Loc Commune People's Committees all attended the training program. More than 100 members of Quyet Thang Cooperative, Tan Loc Phat Cooperative, and residents of the two communes participated in the project.

Mr. Nguyen Tran Thuc - Department of Crop Production and Plant Protection of Ca Mau province spoke at the training session

MSc. Lam Thi Hoang Oanh - Member of Research Institute for Climate Change spoke at the training session

The representatives of the community monitoring groups from Tri Phai and Tan Loc communes shared their achievements in observation and adaptation activities within Thoi Binh district

The training program took place over two days (October 27-28, 2024) in Thoi Binh District, Ca Mau Province; Chau Thanh District and Rach Gia City, Kien Giang Province. The sessions aimed to enhance community awareness of water resource challenges and agricultural practices, covering topics such as sustainable water use, utilizing data from the Knowledge Hub¹, producing organic fertilizers from agricultural residues, and creating bioproducts with indigenous microorganisms. Participants observed practical composting techniques using straw, coconut fiber, and organic waste.

On the second day of the training program, approximately 30 local officials and progressive farmers from Tri Phai and Tan Loc communes conducted field visits to observe effective climate-adaptive organic farming models in Chau Thanh District and Rach Gia City, Kien Giang Province. The agricultural techniques shared by Kien Giang farmers provided valuable insights to the “Monitoring and Adaptation Community” members and farmers from Thoi Binh District, Ca Mau Province, fostering knowledge exchange on sustainable agricultural practices tailored to local climate challenges.

Some images from the training session

Field visit and guidance on the production of Indigenous Microorganism (IMO) products applied in agricultural cultivation

Meeting group photo

The training program is part of a series of activities under the project “Climate Change Adaptation in Ca Mau” implemented by the DRAGON-Mekong Institute and funded by ADM in Vietnam. This project has successfully established two communities of “Monitoring and Adaptation” at the Quyet Thang Cooperative (Tri Phai commune) and the Tan Loc Phat Cooperative (Tan Loc commune) in Thoi Binh district. Participants in this model are equipped with rapid water quality analysis devices and share monitoring data through the community's Zalo group and the Knowledge Hub knowledge-sharing platform. In addition, the project has connected monitoring data from 27 upstream points across 8 districts and Ca Mau city, facilitated by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development of Ca Mau province, along with 20 community-led monitoring points, which include 10 points in Tri Phai commune and 10 points in Tan Loc commune, Thoi Binh district, into the Knowledge Hub information platform.