Torrential rains in early August caused flash floods in 9 provinces of the mountainous north. Some 6 400 houses were submerged and 10 lives lost, while additional floods in mid-August also brought loss of life. These provinces are not key rice producing areas and the effect of the floods on this year’s paddy production is minimal. By contrast, unusually dry conditions in a number of central provinces seriously affected planting and early growth of paddy crops in these areas. Tropical storm Vongfong in late August brought much needed rain for crops in these provinces. Flooding in the southern Mekong Delta in mid-September caused 71 deaths, mainly children, while floods and landslides in central provinces claimed 49 victims, but damage to the rice crop was insignificant. These latest floods have brought the number of casualties nationwide to 205 this year.
Harvesting of the winter/spring paddy crop was completed in July. Following excellent growing conditions, the outcome of the harvest is estimated at 16.5 million tonnes of paddy, a record for this season. The outlook for the summer/autumn crop is mixed. Thus, some losses due to flooding are reported from the Mekong Delta during harvest in August, while dry conditions in central parts of the country affected several thousand hectares of paddy fields. These dry conditions also disrupted sowing and early development of the 10th month crop. While there is still uncertainty about the performance of the summer/autumn and 10th month crops, the aggregate 2002 paddy production is tentatively forecast at 32.3 million tonnes.
The outcome of the 2002 maize crop is estimated at 1.85 million tonnes, slightly below the previous year but above average. In a bid to attain self-sufficiency in maize, the Government plans to expand the area under maize to 1.2 million hectares by 2005 and increase the use of hybrid seeds to reach an annual production in excess of 4 million tonnes.
During the first months of 2002, rice exports were sharply down compared to the previous year. As a result, the forecast tonnage for export in 2002 has been adjusted downwards and now stands at 3 million tonnes, the lowest for the past six years.