Gender in focus in GRiSP forum

A gender forum featuring several speakers from country partners and non-government organizations was held at IRRI headquarters on 14 March.

The forum, titled Bringing better lives to women: Experiences from the field, was organized by Bas Bouman, director of the Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP), and Thelma Paris, IRRI senior scientist and gender specialist.

Topics and speakers were:

• Improved weed management practices and benefits to women in Nepal by Jagat Ranjit, Senior Scientist and Chief of Agronomy Division, NARC, Nepal;
• Promoting quality seed preservation and dissemination with women farmers in southwest Bangladesh by Momotaz Khatun, Executive Director, Ashroy Foundation;
• Women in ecological engineering in South Vietnam by Monina Escalada, University Professor of Visayas State University, Philippines; Women in the rice value chain in West Africa by Matty Demont, Rice Value Chain Analyst, Social Sciences Division, IRRI;
• Changing the livelihood of tribal men and women due to drought-tolerant rice varieties in Mayurbani District, Odisha, India by Matthew Karikulam of Balasore Social Services Society (BSSS);
• Dissemination of drought-tolerant rice varieties with women farmers in India by Manzoor Dar, Senior Associate Scientist, IRRI and
• Participatory varietal selection (PVS) with men and women farmers in South Asia by Thelma Paris, Amelia Cueno, and Donald Villanueva of Social Sciences Division, IRRI.

Discussions on the presentations were led by a panel composed of Gelia Castillo, rural sociologist and IRRI consultant; Uma Lele, independent scholar and former senior advisor at the World Bank; Bhagirath Chauhan, IRRI weed scientist; and Rakesh Kumar Singh, IRRI plant breeder.

 The GRiSP Gender Strategy was also presented by Thelma Paris, IRRI senior scientist and gender specialist. The strategy was reviewed by Dr. Castillo, Dr. Lele, and Jacqueline Ashby, CGIAR senior advisor for gender and research.

Several recommendations were made to revise and strengthen the implementation of the Gender Strategy that involves IRRI, AfricaRice, and CIAT covering Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Dr. Lele also gave an IRRI Seminar, Structural transformation and implications on women’s labor participation in agriculture, on 14 March.

These activities were conducted in celebration of March as International Women’s Month, with the theme, “Gaining momentum.”


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Laos rice policy report released

The Lao People’s Democratic Republic Rice Policy Study, an in-depth study of the Lao PDR rice sector including the prevailing policy environment and recommendations to meet future needs, has been published at the FAO website. 

The Lao government-commissioned study report, a collaboration of the World Bank, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and IRRI, sought to support evidence-based policy decisions by the Lao government. This is seen as the first step in defining a comprehensive food security policy for the Lao PDR.

The report confirms that the structural transformation of the Lao rice sector started a decade ago. This transformation is led by:

a) continued GDP growth from mineral and hydropower exports;
b) increasing job opportunities in the non-agriculture sector;
c) ageing farm population and shortages in labor;
d) increasing urbanization and changes in consumption patterns;
e) stabilization of aggregate national rice consumption as result of declining population growth rate; slow diversification of diet away from rice; and
f) emergence of private-sector driven cash crops (coffee, rubber, bananas, maize, cassava) production and the gradual movement of rice growers away from rice.

The report holds that Laos has moved from rice deficit to production of sizable surplus, which are diffusely distributed in the major rice-producing regions. Rice shortages still occur, but they are more localized, hence the focus of attention should shift from attaining food security to assuring nutritional balance for the well-being of the people.

The report suggests that improved nutritional outcomes will increasingly be dependent on policies that promote higher household incomes, and education on and awareness of better uses of foodstuff.

It recommends that the Lao government support the rice sector by:

a) facilitating trade;
b) strengthening rice and food crops reserves;
c) improving the efficiency and effectiveness of public investment; and
d) strengthening the rice seed sector.


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New project on closing rice yield gaps holds inception workshop

Country partners from six rice bowls in Asia and IRRI scientists met for the inception and planning workshop of the new project Closing Rice Yield Gaps in Asia (CORIGAP) last week (12-13 March) at IRRI Headquarters.

CORIGAP aims to generate improved food security and livelihoods for hundreds of thousands of people in Asia, while minimizing the environmental footprint of rice production. It is an initiative under the Irrigated Rice Research Consortium (IRRC) and is funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.

In his welcome remarks, Bas Bouman, Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP) director, highlighted new components of CORIGAP that will add value to the IRRC’s work, such as modeling tools and software to measure environmental impact.

Grant Singleton, CORIGAP coordinator, gave an overview of the project and facilitated discussions on issues such as links with rice breeding programs and the Sustainable Rice Platform.

IRRI scientists Ruben Lampayan, Martin Gummert, and Bhagirath Chauhan presented opportunities and new research in their respective fields: water use efficiency and productivity, postharvest, and crop establishment and weed management.

Takahiro Sato, cropping systems analyst, introduced the field calculator approach, while soil chemist Sarah Beebout discussed how the project can collect evidence of it being able to reduce ecological footprint of intensive lowland irrigated rice systems.

Digna Manzanilla, associate coordinator of the Consortium for Unfavorable Rice Environments, talked about how gender can be mainstreamed into project activities, while value chain specialist Matty Demont discussed business models and pathways to better market models.

Communication specialists Trina Mendoza presented communication activities in 2013, while Reianne Quilloy guided participants on using the CORIGAP project Google site. The participants were also given a demonstration on using WebEx for web-based meetings.

Partners from Sri Lanka, Indonesia, Myanmar, Vietnam, Thailand, and China developed and presented activity plans for 2013.

In his closing remarks, David Johnson, Crop and Environmental Sciences Division head, said that not all national programs of South and Southeast Asia may be involved in CORIGAP, but achieving tremendous impact in these six countries would mean a great deal in improving farmers’ livelihoods, food security and environmental sustainability in Asia.


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Vietnam: Climate change and land use project makes plans for 2013

The second annual review and planning workshop of the Climate Change Affecting Land Use in the Mekong Delta: Adaptation of Rice-based Cropping Systems (CLUES) Project was held at Can Tho City, Vietnam, earlier this month.

The project, funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), started in March 2011 and will end in February 2015.

Reiner Wassmann, CLUES project leader, presented about greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from rice and their significance, measurement, and options for mitigation.

Database management, data-sharing, and linkages among project theme activities; information dissemination; publication; and outreach were considered very important at this stage of the project.

Workshop participants visited field and greenhouse experiment sites at the Cuu Long Delta Rice Research Institute (CLRRI).

IRRI scientists involved in the annual review and workshop were Dr. Wassmann, To Phuc Tuong, Abdelbagi, Russell Reinke, Romeo Labios, and Ngo Dang Phong.

Other attendees were Bennet Macdonald and John Ward of the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation; Chu Thai Hoanh of the International Water Management Institute; and Geoff Morris and Vu Thi Hai Hau of ACIAR Vietnam.

The workshop was held on 12-13 March 2013.


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China: Green Super Rice project launches second phase

The Green Super Rice (GSR) Project formally launched its second phase in a meeting opened by David Bergvinson of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF).

Dr. Bergvinson cited the project's expanding partnerships and stated the main goal of the meeting, which was to develop a sound seed road map, or SRM, for each country covered. The project aims to benefit 500,000 resource-poor farmers from China, other parts of Asia, and Africa.

Participants came from Chinese institutions, the BMGF, AfricaRice, IRRI, and NARES in Asia and Africa and were welcomed by Jiayang Li, president of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), which hosted the meeting. “The more people involved, the greater the achievements will be,” Dr. Li said.

The meeting brought project stakeholders onto a common platform to improve interaction and cooperation; assess achievements, identify strengths, and address challenges in Phase I; draft a comprehensive work plan for Phase II where stakeholders are fully involved, resources realigned, and approaches for capacity building determined; lay out strategic seed road maps for Asia and Africa; and organize field trips for viewing of newly developed GSR materials.

Zhikang Li, director of the GSR Project, gave the overall report on Phase I.

Phase I reports on Asia and Africa were given by Jauhar Ali, senior IRRI plant breeder, and Baboucarr Manneh, senior scientist at AfricaRice, respectively. Dr. Ali announced the release of the first GSR variety (weed-tolerant rice 1 in Vietnam) and the second GSR hybrid (BSHS GSR6) in Indonesia.

The meeting was held in Sanya, Hainan Province, on 12-14 March 2013.



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GRiSP to host young scientists in Asia Forum

The second gathering of the IRRI young scientists will be held along with the Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP) Asia Forum on 14-18 October 2013 at IRRI Headquarters in Los Baños.

This year, GRiSP will feature a forum for young scientists to interact and share scientific insights with top scientists from around the world on topics related to the 6 GRiSP research themes. It will be a good opportunity for young scientists to become familiar with ongoing research under the various GRiSP institutes across Asia.

The event is being organized by the Association of Fellows, Scholars, Trainees, and Residents of IRRI (AFSTRI) and GRiSP.

For full information, visit the conference website or send an email to a.radanielson@irri.org.


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IRRI staff honored by Philippine crop scientists

Achim Dobermann, deputy director general for research, was given an Honorary Fellow Award by the Crop Science Society of the Philippines (CSSP) during the 22nd Scientific Conference of the Federation of Crop Science Societies of the Philippines.

Dr. Dobermann was cited for his valuable contribution to rice research and development and to food self-sufficiency efforts of the Philippine government. Julian Lapitan, head of IRRI's National Program Relations, received the award on Dr. Dobermann's behalf.

Evangelina Salcedo-Ella, IRRI associate scientist, received the CSSP Achievement Award for Research for her contribution to the understanding of the physiology and genetics of flood tolerance in rice.

Ramon Oliveros, executive assistant to IRRI's deputy director general for communication and partnerships, was elected president of the CSSP for 2013-14. Other IRRI staff who were elected for the same period were Ma. Rebecca C. Laza as secretary and Reneeliza Jean Melgar as board member.

The conference was held at Cagayan de Oro City on 11-16 March 2013.


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