New plan to deal with climate change to be launched this year
The Office of Agricultural Economics (OAE) has finished drafting a new operations plan to cope with climate change, the OAE chief said this week.
Chantanon Wannakhejorn, secretary-general of the OAE, which is under the Agriculture Ministry, said the OAE has worked with both state and private agencies in drafting the new plan, adding that the previous plan covering the period 2017-2022 had now expired, so the subcommittee responsible for enforcing policies on climate ambitions for land use and agriculture has been assigned to draw up a new one.
The OAE serves as the secretary of the subcommittee so was tasked with drafting the new operation plan.
Chantanon said the new plan supports the Food and Agricultural Organisation’s Scaling up Climate Ambition on Land Use and Agriculture through nationally determined contributions and National Adaptation Plans, also known as the SCALA programme. The FAO says its SCALA programme responds to the urgent need for increased action to cope with climate change impacts in the agriculture and land-use sectors.
OAE deputy secretary-general Kanchana Kwanmuang said the OAE would soon submit the new draft operation plan to the policy and development department of the Agriculture Ministry for approval within fiscal 2023.
Once approved, the draft will be sent to the national climate change policy committee for endorsement, Kanchana added.
According to Chantanon, the new plan has five development strategies:
- To increase the ability of farmers, agricultural businesses and supply chains to adapt to climate change
- To promote greenhouse gas reduction among farmers, agro-businesses and supply chains in the long term
- To develop knowledge on climate change so that the agricultural sector realises the importance of carbon emission reduction
- To develop the potential of the agricultural workforce to cope with climate change
- To push for and steer operations to minimise climate change impacts.
Under the plan, farmers would be urged to cultivate a mix of crops and move away from growing single crops on the same land. In addition, farmers and businesses would be encouraged to offer environmentally friendly products with low carbon emissions.
