Establishing Entry Points for Sustainable and Inclusive Groundwater Use for Agriculture in the Mekong

Pavelic, P., S. Bertolatus, S. Douangsavanh, et al. 2026. “Establishing Entry Points for Sustainable and Inclusive Groundwater Use for Agriculture in the Mekong.” In Water Security and Climate Change: Adaptation for Sustainable and Resilient Development, edited by Mukand Babel, Andreas Haarstrick, Lars Ribbe, Victor R. Shinde, Anil Aryal, and Kaushal Chapagain. Springer Water. Springer Switzerland. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-032-08411-8_31.

This research has been carried out in contrasting settings in Champassak province in Lao PDR and Prey Veng province in Cambodia to identify entry points for poor and vulnerable groups to improve their livelihoods through groundwater access. After a careful site selection process, a household level survey was administered in both countries entailing around 100 respondents to gain a good understanding of the local contexts and groundwater-related needs. In Lao PDR, farmers are beginning to find an alternative to upland rainfed coffee production through a range of groundwater irrigated fruits and vegetables. The higher cost of accessing the resource in this volcanic terrain means that many opportunities are as yet unrealized. Limited knowledge on the use of groundwater for irrigation could be addressed through the and provision of improved extension services for technology adoption linked to capacity development. In Cambodia, groundwater is utilized extensively by farmers with their own tube wells to grow lowland rice year-round. Groundwater storage has declined in recent years, threatening the supplies of shallow well users. In the current environment, high fuel prices to pump water and restricted market access is negatively impacting on groundwater irrigation-based livelihoods. High cost incurred by diesel pump owners may be addressed through a range of options. In both contexts, policies that encourage the use of solar-powered pumping and diversification beyond monoculture cropping would provide more reliable income streams and enhance climate resilience. Models to encourage collective action amongst marginal farmers may have potential to improve affordability and access to groundwater enabling technologies and support more socially inclusive and participatory-based climate change adaptation strategies.