11.3.4. Food and Fiber: Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries
11.3.4.1. Agriculture
11.3.4.1.1. Regional importance of agriculture
Agriculture dominates land use and the economies of most countries in Tropical
Asia. Arable land and permanent pasture occupy 15-35% of the land area in most
countries; they occupy approximately 60% and 80% in India and Bangladesh, respectively
(see Table 11-6). Agriculture is a key economic sector,
employing more than half of the labor force and accounting for 10-63% of the
GDP in 1993 in most countries of the region. Substantial foreign exchange earnings
also are derived from exports of agricultural products.
| Table 11-6: Land use in Tropical
Asia, 1991-93. |
|
| Country |
Land Area (000 ha)
|
Cropland (000 ha)
|
Permanent Pasture (000 ha)
|
Forest and Woodland (000 ha)
|
Other Land (000 ha)
|
|
| Bangladesh |
13,017
|
9,700
|
800
|
1,896
|
818
|
| Bhutan |
4,700
|
133
|
272
|
3,100
|
1,194
|
| Brunei |
527
|
7
|
6
|
450
|
64
|
| Cambodia |
17,652
|
2,367
|
1,967
|
11,667
|
1,652
|
| India |
297,319
|
169,547
|
11,533
|
68,330
|
47,909
|
| Indonesia |
181,157
|
30,993
|
11,776
|
111,258
|
27,130
|
| Laos |
23,080
|
807
|
800
|
703
|
20,770
|
| Malaysia |
32,855
|
4,880
|
27
|
20,347
|
7,601
|
| Myanmar |
65,755
|
10,061
|
359
|
32,397
|
22,938
|
| Nepal |
13,680
|
2,354
|
2,000
|
5,750
|
3,576
|
| Papua New Guinea |
45,286
|
412
|
13,577
|
7,377
|
2,014
|
| Philippines |
29,817
|
9,177
|
1,277
|
13,600
|
5,764
|
| Singapore |
61
|
1
|
|
3
|
57
|
| Sri Lanka |
6,463
|
1,903
|
439
|
2,126
|
1,995
|
| Thailand |
51,089
|
20,775
|
797
|
13,557
|
15,960
|
| Viet Nam |
32,549
|
6,607
|
328
|
9,639
|
15,975
|
|
| Source: WRI, 1996-Data Table 9.1. |
Agriculture in Tropical Asia has evolved on the basis of regionally available
crop biodiversity; only a few crops from other regions-such as wheat, potatoes,
and tomatoes-have competed with endemic crops and become widely cultivated.
Much of the land is intensively cropped, and there is a shortage of agricultural
land in some countries (see Annex D). Most areas have
the potential to produce a variety of crops through year-round cultivation;
in several areas, more than one crop is grown annually on the same field. Many
crop combinations are common, either individually or as intercrops. Because
farmers in the region utilize a variety of cropping systems, studies of one
specific crop in one area cannot be extrapolated to represent tropical agriculture
in Asia or its impact on the agricultural economy in general. Some indication
of the range of potential impacts is highlighted in the examples below.
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