The Women in Aquaculture Project
A (R)EVOLUTION IN CAMBODIA'S AGRICULTURE
The effects of global warming hit a poor country like Cambodia particularly hard. Here people are heavily dependent on agriculture. At the same time, there are few opportunities to protect oneself against the effects of crop failures. With the “Women in Aquaculture” project we are looking for a solution.
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The staple food, rice, is only grown by the local smallholders in fields that are flooded by the rains of the rainy season. There is simply no infrastructure for artificial irrigation of the fields. The management of arable land and plantations is inefficient and limited by a lack of nutrient resources. Harvest, if at all, is only once a year, along with the negative consequences in terms of the amount of food produced and the income that can be achieved for it.
With the “Women in Aquaculture” project, we are attempting to extend the harvest phases to year-round cultivation of the cultivated areas by building irrigation ponds and diversifying vegetable and fruit cultivation.
ZHAW WÄDENSWIL AND SMILING GECKO HARNESS TOGETHER
Together with the ZHAW Wädenswil, we operate a pilot plant based on the open source technology “Sun Oxygen System” on the Smiling Gecko Campus. This technology enables rice farmers to operate a multiplex pond for aquaculture and irrigation.
«Expansion to year-round cultivation of cultivated land is possible if farmers move away from traditional rice-growing methods. We'll help you with that!»
The idea behind it is very simple: By building irrigation ponds, farmers will be able to produce plants all year round and by stocking the ponds with fish, the irrigation water will be much richer in nutrients. In addition, the fish become an additional source of food and income.
Why is the project called “Women in Aquaculture”? In particular, women should be recruited and trained for the project. A chance to promote women who do not yet have equal rights in Cambodian culture.
