Three consecutive years of devastating floods coupled with a drought in some parts
of the country have left about half a million people dependent on food aid. NGOs
have warned that the situation is likely to get worse in coming years.
"I'm concerned the underlying cycle of drought and flooding that has been going
on for years is pushing people into debt and forcing them to find alternative sources
of food," said Michael Bird of Oxfam Great Britain. "The 'hungry period'
[the time before harvesting when food is most scarce] seems to be getting longer."
The concerns of NGOs like Oxfam-GB and others have deepened after signs that El Nino,
a climatic phenomenon bringing erratic weather to the region, has returned. Compounding
difficulties is general donor reluctance to supply additional food aid.
"Whether it becomes a critical national crisis or just a food deficit to be
concerned about, depends on having rains and a little longer wet season," said
Talmage Payne of World Vision. "I think without a doubt there will be a food
problem [next year]."
Cambodia received insufficient rains early in the wet season that caused rice crops
to wither in many rural areas. The National Committee for Disaster Management (NCDM)
said that Battambang, Prey Veng and Pursat - which accounted for more than 70 percent
of the 135,000 hectares damaged by drought - were particularly badly affected.
At the same time provinces such as Kandal and Stung Treng were inundated with floodwaters
after heavy rains in parts of Laos and China.
Late rains in Cambodia have resulted in only 60 percent of the normal rice planting
area of two million hectares being planted by late September.
That figure has since improved, but observers said it would require another month
of steady rains to ensure a successful harvest. And they warn that would be unusual
in a typical wet season.
"[The drought] is a slow onset disaster," said Dinah Dimelante, emergency
relief officer with World Vision.
To help those affected, the NGO has cooperated with others to implement 'Work for
Food' programs. Drought-stricken families are digging wells and planting vegetables,
while those suffering from the effects of flooding, who are generally confined to
their villages, have been given food, water containers, mosquito nets, plastic sheets
The government and aid organizations were forced to step in early this year to prevent
crop failures since rice seed, which is normally saved for next year's planting,
had already been eaten in many areas.
The UN's Food and Agricultural Organization has supplied nearly 2,000 metric tons
of rice seed to the Ministry of Agriculture. A coalition of NGOs handed out 1,500
metric tons in food aid - mainly rice - to families in the hardest-hit areas. The
NGOs said more would be needed soon.
"No one is falling over themselves to give food to Cambodia at the moment,"
said Bird. "It does not seem to be a high profile situation. If we can raise
money, we'll be distributing food."
The specter of food insecurity could become a critical issue as next year's general
election approaches, and parties lobby for votes. Relief agencies have cited the
govern-ment's failure to set up adequate rice distribution systems and a lack of
reliable information as critical issues threatening food security.
The Sam Rainsy Party (SRP), using stocks supplied by King Norodom Sihanouk, distributed
rice to about 2,000 people camped in front of its party headquarters in Phnom Penh
in September. Additional food appeals from Kampong Speu and neighboring provinces
were also received.
Rice production in Cambodia has actually increased over the last few years - for
example there was a surplus of 104,000 metric tons in 1997. Another innovation is
the state-owned rice banks which were set up to alleviate food shortages. But with
much of the crop sold abroad, significant amounts of aid are still required each
"Cambodia can easily produce enough to meet its needs, [and] has been for five
years or more," said Talmage Payne. "What's going wrong is that a great
deal of rice is being sold and exported. It gets re-imported during the hungry season
for two to three times the price in nice little bags. You have a year like this,
and it comes pouring back across the border."
Statistics from the NCDM show this year's drought affected more than two million
people in eight provinces, and damaged 135,000 hectares of rice crops. Flooding on
the other hand, which lasted a month or more, affected about 1.5 million people and
covered almost 60,000 hectares.