Ifugao Rice Terraces Now In Critical Stage Of Deterioration According To FAO
RICE TERRACES – The Ifugao Rice Terraces are now faced with a critical issue according to the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO).
Based on an article from Philstar, the FAO stated that the Ifugao Rice Terraces are now in a critical stage of deterioration. These terraces hold an important part of the Philippines’ culture.
In addition to this, it is also recognized as a Globally Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS). Along with that, it is also a UNESCO World Heritage Site which adds to its importance.
As per the article, the GIAHS is a program of the FAO, which was established as a UN partnership initiative for sustainable development in 2002. Its goal is to identify, support, and protect globally important agricultural heritage systems and their livelihoods.
It also aims to conserve the agricultural and associated biodiversity, knowledge systems, cultures, and landscapes globally. With this, GIAHS sites are not living museums, instead, they serve as places where people practice dynamic conservation.
According to the FAO, the survival of the terraces are threatened by several factors. These include environmental degradation, unregulated urbanization, and changing of values.
Over the last hundred years, the Ifugao Rice Terraces were self-sufficient in food, timber, and water. The terraces are fed by an ancient irrigation system found in the rainforests above them.
They were recognized as a UN Education, Scientific, and Cultural Organization World Heritage from 1995. They were carved into the mountains by ancestors of the indigenous approximately 2,000 years ago.
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