An innovative pilot project in Cambodia enables families to grow vegetables in more climate-resilient ways.
Chana and Sare check hundreds of tiny seedlings that peek out from white tubes in their greenhouse in Kratie province, in the Lower Mekong River region of Cambodia. The leaves are small, but the couple are cautiously optimistic about the plants’ success—and about the aquaponics pilot project in which they’re participating.
The project uses an aquaponics method where aquaculture—fish farming—meets hydroponics—growing vegetables without soil. Chana and Sare raise fish in tanks while growing vegetables suspended in tubes of water. The waste the fish produce is a natural fertilizer for plants. Nutrient-rich water from the fish tanks is circulated to irrigate the vegetables, and the plants in turn filter the water that returns to the fish tanks.
Just add water
“I didn’t believe that vegetables can be grown in water,” said Chana. “I thought at the beginning that it will not be possible. But after we studied and trained—it is possible. Now we can share this information with other people.”
Since starting the project in August 2022, Chana and Sare’s family—and two other participating families—have grown spinach, a variety of salad greens, collard greens, and cauliflower.
Prior to that, the vegetables their family consumed came from either the market—a 30-minute boat ride each way—or their own soil garden. The latter requires fertilizers and pesticides, manual plowing, and carrying water by hand. Greenhouse seedlings, by contrast, don’t need chemicals or manipulation of the soil—because there is none. Once seeds sprout, the seedlings are placed in small square sponges and left to grow.
“When I use the aquaponic system, I feel that it is easier than growing directly on the ground,” said Sare. “The difficulty was that I must spray pesticides on worms and small insects, but with aquaponics, you don’t need to; it’s easy.”
The project, a partnership between Oxfam and a local organization called Northeastern Rural Development, is an effort to combat the increasingly dire impacts of climate change. More than 65 million people live along the Lower Mekong River that winds through six countries. Like most of them, Chana and Sare depend on the river for drinking water, food, irrigation, transportation, and income.
Droughts and flooding have become more common and severe. Combined with hotter temperatures, erratic weather has made it difficult for farmers to plant and harvest enough food for themselves and to also earn income. The greenhouse method enables farmers to extend the growing season and produce more food—sometimes harvesting seven or eight times a year.
“If we have enough power supply, I could produce vegetables all year round,” said Sare. “In my mind, I think that if I get another greenhouse, I will be much happier than now. One is a bit little, two would be good. If I have money, I will buy another one.”
A greenhouse for one family, including solar panels and batteries, costs $3,900. Batteries sometimes fail, so Northeastern Rural Development connects the families with service companies, but the organization is also training a local team of solar technicians on how to troubleshoot problems and fix equipment.
Next up
The aquaponics program is just one initiative in Oxfam’s collaboration with nonprofit, government, and academic partners to support communities that live along the Mekong River and its tributaries. Over the past decade, Oxfam and local partners have been working with researchers, civil society organizations, and youth and Indigenous groups to train people on managing disasters and climate risks, and on adapting to climate change. That work includes establishing and supporting fishery networks, which work to increase the supply of fish and protect them against illegal fishing and the dumping of waste into waterways.
Chana has seen Oxfam’s work in three villages in his commune. “First they set up the management of community fisheries, then a buffalo bank where they gave buffaloes to newlyweds, and now this,” he said. “This is a climate resilience project; Oxfam is piloting it for the first time to see whether it’s workable or not. I think this project is working very well.”