Rice-growing areas in Karenni (Kayah) State have been affected by the ongoing armed conflict and only three percent of pre-coup agricultural land can currently be farmed, raising concerns about long-term food security, according to a member of the Karenni IDP assistance association.
“It is very difficult to resume farming. In most of these places, the IDPs also don’t have access to donations. They can’t farm in the places close to the conflict zone. Rice-growing areas are now in the conflict zone. So rice that comes from outside costs us a lot more because of the transportation costs. The rice-growing area has shrunk considerably – only around 3 percent of the land is usable,” he said.
Since the military coup, the number of displaced people in Karenni State has reached more than 200,000, most of whom are dependent on aid, according to the Karenni IDP assistance group. In key rice-growing areas such as Demoso and Loikaw Townships, most people have been displaced due to the fighting, the group said.
Although some of the displaced people are engaged in subsistence farming, the limited cultivable land and uneven distribution of aid means they are food insecure, the association said.
“The ongoing conflict and declining donations are the main concerns. They are now facing even more shortages. Prices have gone up and transportation has become more difficult. The worst thing is that we can’t farm and raise livestock in our state,” said a member of the group.
According to a statement by the Karenni State Interim Executive Council (IEC), the monthly rice consumption of over 100,000 displaced people is about 50,000 bags of rice and they are still heavily dependent on aid.
Maw Thae Mar, a member of the Coordination Team for Emergency Relief (CTER), said: “They are trying to farm as much as they can. They farm near their huts. They can’t do that extensively because they might have to flee again. They have often fled because of the artillery and air attacks. That is the situation on the ground. Most of them can’t farm. They have often had to flee when their crops were just beginning to bloom”
There are currently regular food shortages in the displaced persons’ camps. In some camps, people have had to eat less now and, according to health workers, children have been diagnosed with malnutrition.
“We were working on the farms long before the coup. We used to be very well off. After the coup, the situation became very difficult for us. We can no longer work in agriculture because many areas are now conflict zones. I believe that only three percent of the land is still usable,” said another displaced woman.
The number of displaced people in Karenni State is over 200,000, with most of the displaced people living in the Demoso Township, which, according to aid workers, is still the main rice-growing area.
Sent by Kantarawaddy Times.