Thailand receives its first Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System recognition
Thailand is among five new GIAHS sites announced as the FAO flagship programme in celebration of its 20th anniversary.
Five new sites - a mushroom-growing area in China, a traditional Maya agroforestry system in Mexico, an ancient community linking pastoralists and farmers in Morocco, a diverse mountain agrifood system in Spain and a landscape centred on the buffalo in Thailand - have been formally recognized as Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS).
The sites were designated during a meeting of the GIAHS Scientific Advisory Group taking place in Rome this week (November 2-4), just days after the flagship programme of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) marked its 20th anniversary. The selection criteria stipulate that sites must be of global importance, have value as a public good, supporting food and livelihood security, agro-biodiversity, knowledge systems, social values and culture as well as outstanding landscapes.
With the latest additions to the global agricultural heritage systems list. FAO's worldwide agricultural heritage network now consists of 72 systems in 23 countries around the globe. The first site to be recognized in Thailand marks the addition of a new country to the list.
Phatthalung province’s Thale Noi Wetland – Landscape shared by humans and buffaloes
The Thale Noi Wetland Buffalo Pastoral Agro-Eco-System in southern Thailand is a diversified farming system marked by longstanding interaction between humans and buffaloes. Over the centuries, pastoralism has shaped and conserved the biodiversity and landscapes while buffaloes adapted to survive in this environment where the land is flooded for almost five months during the year. The system involves a range of mutually supportive practices such as animal herding, fishing, water plant cultivation, harvesting of non-timber forest products and tourism. These provide the foundations for local food and livelihood security, biodiversity conservation, and solidarity among local communities.
The Buffaloes, which have a special place in Thai culture, are herded either free-range or using pens where animals are sheltered at night. During the monsoon season, buffaloes are kept in sheds, typically built 1.5 m above ground. Herders lead their animals out to the grazing areas through the flooded fields and bring them back before nightfall. Buffalo husbandry in Thale Noi is characterized by sharing and communal management. The pastoralists also rely on a strong base of expertise in fishing techniques using traditional equipment to boost their food security during the monsoon season, while during the dry season they turn their hands to farming.
