During this reporting period, the weather was warmer and drier than usual. The harvest of maize started in January, whereas that of the second rice crop started in March. Wheat reached maturity in February. The country is plagued by an internal conflict, which has caused displacement of people, restrictions of movement and trade, as well as a surge of input prices for crop production.

Compared to the 15YA, RAIN was lower (-5%) while TEMP was higher (+0.3ºC) and RADPAR was down by 3%. As a result, BIOMSS was slightly above the average (+1%). Compared to the 5YA, the utilization of cropland dropped by 1%. NDVI values were  average during the entire period. The maximum VCI during this period was 0.85.

As shown by the NDVI clusters map and profiles, the crop conditions across the country were quite different. More than half (69.3%) of the country’s cropland showed average and above average crop conditions. It was mainly located in the Central Plain. The remaining 30.7% trended below average throughout this monitoring period. The lowest VCI values were observed for parts of the Central Plain. During this monitoring period, the crop conditions for most of the country were fair.

Regional analysis

Three sub-national agro-ecological zones (AEZ) can be distinguished for Myanmar based on the cropping system, climatic zones and topographic conditions. They are the Central plain, the Hills and the Delta and Southern Coast regions.

The Central Plain had a marked rainfall deficit (RAIN -33%), RADPAR dropped by 3% and TEMP was up by 0.6ºC compared to the 15YA. BIOMSS was 4% lower than the 15YA.  CALF (-3%) showed that only 69% of the cropland was fully utilized. NDVI was near the level of the 5YA for most of the period and was above-average in early April. The VCIx was 0.81. Crop conditions for this region were slightly below average.

The Hills region also had below-average rainfall (RAIN -8%). RADPAR was 3% below average and TEMP increased by 0.1ºC. BIOMSS was the same as the 15YA. Most of the cropland was fully utilized (CALF 93%). The NDVI values were close to the 5YA during the whole period. The VCIx was 0.89. Crop conditions are assessed as close to the 5YA level.

The Delta and Southern Coast region had the highest RAIN compared with the other two sub-national regions, and it was 18% above the 15YA. TEMP was 0.3ºC above average while RADPAR decreased by 4%. BIOMSS was 10% above the 15YA. The cropland was not fully utilized (CALF 88%). VCIx was 0.88. The NDVI values were near the 5YA. Crop conditions in this region were near average.

Figure 3.30 Myanmar crop condition, January - April 2022

(a) Phenology of major crops

(b)  Crop condition development graph based on NDVI

(c)  Rainfall Profile

(d) Temperature Profile

(e)  Maximum Vegetation Condition Index (VCIx) in Myanmar

(f)  Spatial NDVI patterns compared to %5YA

(g) Crop condition development graph based on NDVI in central plain region

(h) Crop condition development graph based on NDVI in hills region

(i)  Crop condition development graph based on NDVI in delta and southern coast region

Table 3.51 Myanmar agroclimatic indicators by sub-national regions, current season's values and departure from 15YA,  January – April 2022

 Table 3.52 Myanmar agroclimatic indicators by sub-national regions, current season's values and departure from 5YA,  January – April 2022