Sustainability of Small Farming Households: an Outcome of their Being a Sufficiency Economy Unit

Abstract

ABSTRACT
This study aims to investigate the effects of small farming households’ adherence to the principles of Sufficiency Economy Philosophy (SEP) on the sustainability of their occupational pursuits, using the Sustainable Livelihood Index (SLI). It is confined to 447 samples of small farming households in Chiang Mai Province. The results from the least-squares regression method reveal three factors that have a statistically significant positive effect on the households’ sustainability and confirm that the factor of being a Sufficiency Economy (SE) of the household is the most crucial for the realization of sustainability compared to the other two factors, namely, farmland area and adequacy of water for farm irrigation in descendent order. Furthermore, the tendency for the farming household’s sustainability is found to be higher with the increased level of the household’s being an SE unit. Therefore, the knowledge about sufficiency economy principles and guidelines should be extended to farmers to enable them to have a greater understanding of the nature and the benefits of the SEP. Moreover, the application of the SEP in the development efforts employing the Sustainable Livelihoods Approach (SLA) can enhance the capability of the development agencies to help eliminate rural-farming households’ poverty problems effectively and concretely toward achieving the long-run sustainable livelihood of farming households.

Keywords: Household Sustainability, New Theory Agriculture, Sufficiency Economy, Sustainable Livelihood Index, Thai Agriculture, Rice Farmers

References

Chantarat, S., Attavanich, W., & Sa-ngimnet, B. (2018). Micro Thai farmers through farmer registration database: Focus on Thai farming structure change from the past to present (In Thai). Retrieved from https://www.pier.or.th/wp-content/uploads/ 2018/05/aBRIDGEd_2018_009.pdf

Démurger, S., Fournier, M. & Yang, W. (2010). Rural households' decisions towards income diversification: Evidence from a township in northern China. China Economic Review. 21(S1) 32–44.

Ellis, F. (2000). Rural Livelihoods and Diversity in Developing Countries. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.

Findley, S.E. (1987). Rural Development and Migration: a Study of Family Choices in the Philippines. Colorado, USA: West View Press, Boulder, CO.

Glauben, T., Tietje, H. & Weiss, C. (2006). Agriculture on the move: exploring regional differences in farm exit rates. Review of Regional Research. 26(1): 103–118.

Goetz, S.J. & Debertin, D.L. (2001). Why farmers quit: a county-level analysis. American Journal of Agricultural Economics. 83(4): 1010-1023.

Joshi, P.K., Gulati, A.A., Birthal, P.S. & Twari, L. (2003, February). Agriculture diversification in South Asia: Pattern, determinants and policy implications. Discussion paper no. 57. Market structure studies division. International food policy Research Institute. Washington D.C.

Kimhi, A. & Bollman, R. (1999). Family farm dynamics in Canada and Israel: the case of farm exits. Agricultural Economics. 21(1): 69–79.

Mariano, M.J., Villano, R. & Fleming, E. (2012). Factors influencing farmers’ adoption of modern rice technologies and good management practices in the Philippines. Agricultural Systems. 110(C): 41–53.

Minot, N.W., Epprecht, M., Anh, T.T.T. & Trung, L.Q. (2006). Income Diversification and Poverty in the Northern Uplands of Vietnam. International Food Policy Research Institute Research Report. 145: 1–111. doi: 10.2499/0896291480

Mongsawad, P. (2012). The Philosophy Sufficiency Economy: A contribution to the Story of Development. Asia-Pacific Development Journal. 17(1): 123–143.

National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB). (2018). The national strategy for 2018-2037 (In Thai). Retrieved from http://www.ratchakitcha.soc.go.th/DATA/PDF/2561/A/082/T_0001.PDF

Niehof, A. (2004). The significance of diversification for rural livelihood systems. Food Policy. 29(4): 321–338.

Office of Agricultural Economics. (2018). Agricultual Production Statistics (in Thai). Retrieved from http://www.oae.go.th/view/1/ Agricultural production information /TH-TH.

Office of Agricultural Economics. (2020a). Indicators of Socio-economic Conditions of Farming Households (in Thai). Retrieved from http://www.oae.go.th/assets/portals/1/files/socio/socio10june63.pdf

Office of Agricultural Economics. (2020b). Press release of OAE on COVID-19 causing workers to return home to depend on farming (in Thai). Retrieved from. http://www.oae.go.th/view/1/รายละเอียดข่าว/ข่าว%20สศก./34348/TH-TH

Office of the Royal Development Projects Board. (2011). The Sufficiency Economy Philosophy Contest. Bangkok, Thailand: Arun Printing Ltd.

Panahi, F., Malekmohammadim, I., Chizari, M. & Samani, J. M. V. (2009). The Role of Optimizing Agricultural Water Resource Management to livelihood Poverty abolition in Rural Iran. Australian Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences. 3(4): 3841–3849

Piboolsravut, P. (2000). An introductory note. Sufficiency Economy. Excerpt partly from the conference statement of the 10th UNCTAD, Bangkok.

Piboolsravut, P. (2004). Sufficiency economy. ASEAN Economic Bulletin. 21(1),127–134.

Prabripu, P. (2020). Effects of Sufficiency Economy Philosophy Practices on Sustainability of Rice Farming Career in Chiang Mai Province. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Puntasen, A. (2001). Buddhist Economics: Evolution, Theory and Application to Various Economics. Amarin publishing, Bangkok.

Slater, R. (2002). Differentiation and diversification: Changing livelihoods in Qwaqwa, South Africa, 1970–2000. J South. Afr. Stud. 28(3): 599–614

Soltani, A., Angelsen, A., Eid, T., Naieni, M. S. N. & Shamekhi, T. (2012). Poverty, sustainability, and household livelihood strategies in Zagros, Iran. Ecological Economics. 79(C): 60–70.

Sultana, N., Hossain, E. & Islam, K. (2015). Income diversification and household well-being: A case study in rural areas of Bangladesh. Int. J. Bus. Econ. Res, 4(3): 172–179.

Suwansrinon, A. 2001. The New Theory: A Part to Sustainable Agriculturally Based Rural Livelihood in Thailand. (Unpublished master's thesis). London School of Economics, UK.

Thongpakdee, N. (2011). Sufficiency economy philosophy and the Thai society. Bangkok: Sufficiency Economy Study Center. The National Institute of the Development Administration.

Ubonsri, B. & Pannunb, A. (2013). “A Study of Applying Sufficiency Economy to Lifestyles and use of Resources at Community Levels”. Procedia Environmental Sciences. 17: 976-83.

Utsahajit, V. (2014). Sufficiency economy and human resource development. Faculty of Human Resources Development. National Institute of Development Administration. Printing of Chulalongkorn University. Bangkok.

Wan, J., Li, R., Wang, W., Liu, Z., & Chen, B. (2016). Income diversification: A strategy for rural region risk management. Sustainability. 8(10): 1–12.

Wasi, P. (1999). Sufficiency Economy and Civil Society Guidelines.“Ways to revive the economy and society”. Folk Doctor Foundation, Bangkok.

Wiboonpongse, A. & Sriboonchitta, S. (2009). The research- development project on agriculture and community enterprise system based on the sufficiency economy philosophy. Report submitted to Thailand Research Fund, Chiang Mai University.

Yamane, T. (1967). Statistics: An Introductory Analysis, 2nd Ed.. New York: Harper and Row.