Source: SEAMEO BIOTROP's Research Grant | 2015
Abstract:
This article argues that the practice of agroforestry
provides economic and ecological contributions to the smallholder farmers
cultivating in the watershed areas. Specifically,
this farming system helps ensure food security, through the combined production
of short-term and long-term crops that produce food throughout the year, while
at the same time providing ecological services through the carbon sequestration
potential of the woody perennials and the contribution for biodiversity
conservation of the other components of the system. This argument is based on the research
conducted in Molawin-Dampalit Sub-Watershed in the Philippines and Way Betung
Watershed in Indonesia, involving an interview of 106 and 261 smallholder
farmers, and an assessment of a total of 27 and 14 agroforesty plots for carbon
stock assessment and biodiversity assessment, respectively. Research results reveal that the smallholder
farmers in both study sites have high levels of food security having a score of
8.07 and 7.66, respectively, based on
four measures/indicators, namely:
food availability, food accessibility, food stability and food
utilization. In addition, research
results indicate that the total carbon found among the crop components was 53.32 MgC ha -1 and 244.26 MgC
ha -1 , which suggests the high carbon sequestration potential of the
woody perennials and understorey crops in an agroforestry system. The farmlots being cultivated by the
smallholder farmers were found to contribute to biodiversity conservation
having a moderate biodiversity index of 2.59 and 2.53, respectively. With these findings, promotion of desired
agroforestry systems in suitable portions of the watershed areas should be
intensified and heightened to contribute to ecological balance across the
landscape. Agroforestry should always be
an integral part of all initiatives toward ecological restoration with the
cutivators/smallholder farmers as potential partners. The agroforestry system should consider all
the technical and socioeconomic considerations toward having diverse components
and ensure food security among the smallholder farmers throughout the year.
Keywords: agroforestry; food security; biodiversity
index; carbon stock; Molawin-Dampalit
Sub-Watershed; Way Betung Watershed