The Thai Rice project was intended to enable a shift towards low-emission rice production in Thailand. It did so through a combination of three causal pathways. The first worked directly with farmers to implement low-emission rice farming. The second supported entrepreneurs providing mitigation services to farmers. The final pathway sought to put appropriate policies in place to promote low-emission production at the national political level.
AMBERO and Oxford Policy Management conducted the Final Evaluation and Learning Exercise (ELE) regarding the project’s progress. Here are a few significant outcomes of the ELE:
- The project was able to successfully drive transformational change in the Thai Rice sector. The evaluation shows how the project improved local and federal government capacities, effectively reduced emissions on farms and established a successful Measurement, Reporting and Verification program of greenhouse gas emissions which will inform future policy development.
- As such, the evaluation recognised that the benefits of the project are likely to be sustained due to the capacity enhancement of key stakeholders and scaling of the project before closure.
- The project was effective at reducing greenhouse gas emissions through the promotion of low-carbon cultivation technologies, namely the use of alternate wetting and drying across farmers.
- The Thai Rice project aligned with existing government policies and helped shape future policies towards greenhouse gas reductions. The combination of a technical and financial component offered a ‘package of services’ relevant to farmers and service providers.
Following the main findings and recommendations of the ELE, the TSU and the project have compiled a management response to address the key points that were raised. The management response and the Final ELE report are now available in the Knowledge and Learning Hub.