Thai-German Agricultural Development Project Saraburi (Pra-Buddhabat Land Settlement)

PROJECT DURATION

1967 – 1975

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The Thai-German Agricultural Development Project Saraburi – also commonly known as Pra-Buddhabat Land Settlement – was located around 136 km north of Bangkok between the provincial cities of Saraburi and Lopburi and covered and area of 136,000 hectares of cultivated land.

This area at that time was under the administration of the Department of Public Welfare. the overall goal of the project was defined as improving and stabilizing the income sources of settlers by developing methods of farming. To this end the projects activities focused on the following core areas: (1) introduction of livestock husbandry, (2) introduction of new crops, (3) formation of settlers’ supply and marketing organizations, (4) testing of machines and implements for their use in the settlement, (5) improvement of the local water supply system, (6) agricultural training of settlers and settlement officers. By diversifying and increasing agricultural production to market needs, by applying adapted production methods and technology new roads of progress have been opened to the farmers.

As the first project of Thai-German technical cooperation in the field of rural development this project also served as a model for the Thai-German Agricultural Development Projects in Lamthaklong and Pimai as well as for developing the settlements selected for the Thai – German Land Settle ment Promotion Project.