3rd IRRC Steering Committee Meeting a success!

Hanoi, Vietnam—In the face of growing pressure on one of Asia’s most important food production systems, experts are warning that farmers must get more help to make them more efficient.

Irrigated rice production provides about 75 percent of the world’s rice needs, and has a particularly important role to play at the moment as international rice prices are at a 10-year high, while global stocks are at a 30-year low. However, on the eve of a meeting in Vietnam of more than 50 rice scientists from 13 countries, the problems facing irrigated rice farmers are being highlighted.

In Vietnam alone, industrial development has caused the loss of 300,000 hectares of irrigated rice land in the past 5 years. There is also increasing competition between rice farmers and industry over water needed for energy production and for access to water from the main reservoirs around Hanoi.

Other problems are the increased migration of farm laborers to cities, the reemergence of rice pests and diseases, and the increasing costs of production and inputs. However, there is also some good news.

Research efforts to help rice farmers boost their production efficiency and rein in their costs are being helped by new scientific knowledge in several key areas, including new technologies to optimize the use of fertilizers and reduce water use.

On 8-10 October, 66 international rice scientists from 13 countries gathered for the 3rd Steering Committee meeting of the Irrigated Rice Research Consortium (IRRC) of the International Rice Research Institute and hosted by the Vietnamese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (VAAS). High on the agenda is how to assist farmers with access to irrigation to be more efficient in their production of rice.

In his welcome speech, His Excellency Dr. Dao Xuan Hoc, vice minister of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), Vietnam, said that the Irrigated Rice Research Consortium (IRRC) will continue to be an important partner of MARD for many years to come.

He was greatly appreciative of the important contributions of IRRI, particularly the IRRC, to Vietnamese rice production and rural development.
He mentioned that Vietnam is looking forward to strengthening its collaborative relationship with
IRRC scientists to assist the country in tackling emerging issues that need a sustained investment in research on natural resource management of rice production systems. Methods are also needed to
deliver the outputs of this research in a timely manner
to smallholder farmers.

Dr. Nguyen Van Bo, VAAS president, extended
warm greetings from VAAS to all the participants,
especially those who were in Vietnam for the fi rst time. He was happy that Vietnam was chosen as one of the key partners of the IRRC since the first phase. Research results from the IRRC have contributed greatly to rice production and rice-based cropping systems in Vietnam, and the Vietnamese government
and MARD are deeply grateful for these contributions. Dr. Bo said that this meeting was an excellent chance to share experiences among key rice scientists of Asia, especially from well-known rice-producing countries, to overcome difficulties in rice production.

The distinguished guests included Dr. Walter Meyer
(head of East Asia Division, Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation [SDC], Switzerland), Dr. Michel Evequoz (SDC Hanoi), Mr. Geoff Morris (ACIAR country manager, Vietnam), Dr. Christian Witt (director, Southeast Asia Program, International Plant Nutrition Institute, Singapore), and Dr. T.P. Tuong (deputy director general of IRRI).

Ms. Karen Eloisa Barroga of the Philippine Rice
Research Institute was elected as the new SC chair for 2008. Other committee members who attended were Dr. Hasil Sembiring (director, Indonesian Center for Rice Research [ICRR]), Dr. Dai Xiaofeng (deputy director general, Department of Scientific Management, Chinese Academy of Agricultural
Sciences), Dr. Mata Prasad Pandey (director, Central
Rice Research Institute, India), U Than Aye (deputy
director general, Department of Agricultural Planning, Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation, Myanmar), Dr. Achim Dobermann (IRRI representative and Program 2 leader), Dr. Nguyen Van Bo, and Dr. Carmen Thönnissen (SDC representative).

Representatives also came from collaborating institutions: Bangladesh Rice Research Institute, Cambodian Agricultural Research and Development Institute, G.B. Pant University of Agriculture and Technology, Punjab Agricultural University, Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Indonesian Center for Food Crops Research and Development, ICRR, Indonesian Center for Agricultural Technology Assessment and Development, Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture, VAAS, MARD, and Thailand Rice Department.

The SC meeting coincided with the start of a 2-week external review of the IRRC. External reviewers Dr.
Ian Willett, Dr. John Angus, Mr. Edmund Sana, and Dr. Benchaphun Ekasingh attended the SC meeting,
which concluded with a field trip to meet with local
collaborators in Ha Nam Province.

A workshop/conference to capture the learning from
various countries on the research-to-impact pathway
for natural resource management in lowland rice is
planned for October 2008 in the Philippines, as well as a final SC meeting for phase 3.

Duncan Macintosh (d.macintosh@cgiar.org), Ma. Angeles Quilloy
(m.a.quilloy@cgiar.org) and
Trina Mendoza (t.mendoza@cgiar.org)

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