GRiSP in motion

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The Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP), which is the CGIAR Research Program on Rice, represents or

the rst time ever a single strategic and work plan or global rice research. GRiSP brings together hundreds

o scientists to embark on the most comprehensive attempt ever to harness the power o science to solve

the pressing development challenges o the 21st century. Cutting-edge science is deployed to develop

new rice varieties with high yield potential and tolerance o a variety o stresses such as fooding, salinity,

drought, soil problems, pests, weeds, and diseases. Improved natural resource management practices will

allow armers to ully realize the benets o such new varieties on a sustainable basis while protecting the

environment. Future rice production systems are designed to adapt to climate change and to mitigate theimpacts o global warming. Policies conducive to the adoption o new varieties and cropping systems will

be designed to acilitate the realization o development outcomes. GRiSP will train uture rice scientists

and strengthen the capacity o advisory systems to reach millions o armers. For impact at scale, GRiSP

scientists collaborate with hundreds o development partners rom the public and private sector across the

globe.

GRiSP was launched in 2010 and is coordinated by three members o the CGIAR Consortiumthe In-

ternational Rice Research Institute (IRRI, the lead institute), Arica Rice Center (AricaRice), the International

Center or Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)and three other leading agricultural agencies with an international

mandate and with a large portolio on rice: Centre de Cooperation lnternationale en Recherche Agronom-

ique pour le Dveloppement (Cirad), Llnstitut de Recherche pour le Dveloppement (IRD), and the Japan

International Research Center or Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS). Together, they align and bring to the table

consortia, networks, platorms, programs, and collaborative projects with over 900 partners rom the gov-

ernment, nongovernment, public, private, and civil society sectors.

The responsibility or this publication rests solely with the Global Rice Science Partnership.

cc Global Rice Science Partnership 2013

This publication is copyrighted by GRiSP and is licensed or use under a Creative Commons Attribution-

NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 License (Unported). Unless otherwise noted, users are ree to copy,

duplicate, or reproduce and distribute, display, or transmit any o the articles and to make translations,

adaptation, or other derivative works under specic conditions spelled out at http://creativecommons.org/

licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0.

Mailing address:

Dr. Bas Bouman, GRiSP director

c/o IRRI, DAPO Box 7777

Metro Manila, Philippines

Phone: +63 (2) 580-5600

Fax: +63 (2) 580-5699

Email: [email protected]

Web site: www.cgiar.org/rice-grisp.

Suggested citation:

GRiSP (Global Rice Science Partnership). 2013. GRiSP in motion, Annual Report 2012.

Los Baos (Philippines): International Rice Research Institute. 32 p.

Managing Editors: Gene Hettel and Sophie ClaytonEditors: Savitri Mohapatra and Alaric Francis Santiaguel

Copy Editor: Bill HardyDesign and layout: Emmanuel Panisales

Writers: Sophie Clayton, David Johnson, Gladys Ebron, Lizbeth Baroa-Edra, Paula Bianca Ferrer, Guy

Manners (Green Ink), Ruben Lampayan, Elenor de Leon, Matthias Lorieux, Digna Manzanilla, Andy Nelson,

Neil Palmer, Lanie Reyes, M. Srinivas Rao, Rona Nia Mae Rojas, Alaric Francis Santiaguel, and

Poornima Shankar

Production assistants: Antonette Abigail Caballero, Cynthia Quintos

Distribution: Lourdes Columbres

Cover photo: Chris Quintana, IRRI


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Contents

Transplanting Uruguaysrice experience intoAsias rice felds

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6Stopping rice enemynumber one

8Modern arks or ancientrice

10The next big gene on thescene

12Banking on the rice othe uture

13Genetic bridges betweenArica and Asia

14Domesticating WestAricas rice market

16A rice by any other name

18Customizingcommunications or localaudiences

20Cambodias rice feld odreams

22 Beyond the good oldtimes

24Name that weed!

26A new breed o breeders

28Building the oundationo rice science

30Earth-cooling technology

31A new eye on Arica:putting rice on the map

1GRiSP in motion


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GRiSP in motion

The year 2012 was the second year o implementation

o the CGIAR Research Program or Rice, known

as the Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP).

Since its launch in December 2010, we have considerably

strengthened our partnership oundation or mobilizing

science to increase ood security, alleviate poverty, and

increase the sustainability o rice production. Both the

collaboration among GRiSPs six coordinating institutes and

that between those institutes and more than 900 other

partners rom the public and private sector worldwide have

intensied considerably.

GRiSP aims to develop science-based solutions to

todays and tomorrows agricultural development problems.

It mobilizes partners that operate on the cutting edge o

science at one end o the globe and connects them withgrass-roots partners at other ends. In this report, we present

a snapshot o such activities that illustrates the tremendous

gains that well-chosen partnerships can deliver. Youll read

about partnerships that discover new genes and deploy

those genes to produce new rice varieties that increase

tolerance o phosphorus deciency, coner resistance to

insect pests and virus diseases, or will lead to a completely

new type o rice, called C4

rice, which could potentially

increase yields by up to 50%. But, youll also read how GRiSP

partners team up with indigenous people and local armer

groups in remote areas to preserve and improve age-old ricevarieties and make sure they are retained or generations to

come.

GRiSP partners rom Latin America, Arica, and Asia

discuss the workings o each others rice sectors and policies

and cross-ertilize each other with new ideas. New concepts

or orging local partnerships are piloted in South Asia and

across Arica in an attempt to ast-track the development

and delivery o locally adapted technologies. And, nally,

GRiSP invests in capacity building o the next generation o

rice scientists and helps them prepare to become leaders in

their own right when its their turn to take over rom thecurrent generation.

I hope you enjoy reading these snapshots and can share

in the exhilaration we all eel in being part o GRiSP and

combining our knowledge to help make our world a more

ood-secure, richer, and environmentally riendly place to live

in.

Bas Bouman

Director, GRiSP

C.

Quintana,IRRI


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Uruguay has achieved a 25% increase in rice productivity in recent yearsmuch higher than many other nationswhich has set it on track to contribute to meeting the global demand or an estimated 116 million additional tons orice by 2035. Representatives rom around 20 countries brought together by GRiSP went to Uruguay to learn abouits success in rice production and study whether, and how, Uruguays model can be used in Asia.

Transplanting Uruguays rice experienceinto Asias rice felds

From relative obscurity 50

years ago, Uruguay, a small

South American country,

now has the third-highest rice

productivity in the worldanaverage o 8 tons per hectare

o dry paddy rice over the last 5

years. Although it has only 580

rice armers cultivating some

180,000 hectares o irrigated

rice, Uruguays unique system

has triggered 25% gains in

productivity in recent years.

The Uruguayan wayThe eatures o the rice sector

are vertical integration and

transparency among armers,

millers, researchers, and the

government. This structure

integrates complete and up-to-date inormation on rice

exports, well-dened rules on rice quality standards, active

participation o armers and millers in research goals, and

the armer-miller relationship duly signed in a production

contract every year, including agreement on the price

armers will receive or their rice.

Organized through the Rice Growers Association (ACA

in Spanish), armers sell their rice directly to local mills, which

process it or export. The mills work closely with international

traders and eed inormation to rice breeders at Uruguays

National Agricultural Research Institution (INIA by its Spanish

acronym) on the type o rice they need. This ensures that

INIAs breeding and research priorities are in line with market

demand.

An integrated rice chainUruguay has no publicly

unded extension system.

Instead, rice millers employ

their own agronomists,

who have close contact

with researchers at INIA, to

provide armers with crop

management advice. The mills

also supply armers with clean,

certied rice seed to help

guarantee the best possible

harvest, which assures millers

o a reliable source o high-

quality paddy.

As co-ounders o the

Latin American Fund or

Irrigated Rice (FLAR by its

Spanish acronym) in 1995,

INIA, ACA, and rice millers

helped ensure that rice producers are able to get the latest

technologies as soon as they are delivered by international

centers.

The integration o the rice chain has been the driving

orce or the impressive competitiveness achieved in the past

our decades in Uruguay, explained Gonzalo Zorrilla, FLAR

executive ocer and GRiSP theme leader.

The agronomy revolutionUruguays impressive yield gains were accomplished partly by

using improved varieties, but mainly through improved crop

management practices such as timely crop establishment,

water and nutrient management, and proper weed control.

The quick adoption o these simple but eective agronomic

in motion

N.

Palmer,CIAT

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improvements was achieved through close interaction

among scientists, agronomists, and armer groups who make

requent eld visits together and pragmatically discuss what

works and what doesnt.

Vietnams visionCan Uruguays success be duplicated in Asia, where 120

million rice armers have an average area o 0.52 hectares

and very limited access to inputs?

I think elements o the Uruguayan system really could

work well in parts o the Mekong Delta, said Bas Bouman,

director o GRiSP. In Vietnams An Giang Province, or

example, the government has a vision to develop a high-

quality rice sector to supply international markets. Here, I

could see one or more large mills joining together with large

groups o armers to produce high-value rice in a system

based on trust and transparency.

Pham Van Du, deputy director general o the

Department o Crop Production o the Vietnamese Ministry

o Agriculture and Rural Development, who joined the

GRiSP meeting in Uruguay, saw valuable lessons or a new

Vietnamese program called Small Farmers, Large Rice

Field. Under the program, millers, armers, and the public

and private sector work together to produce high-quality

rice.

Later in 2012, Dr. Du continued the discussion with Ra

Uraga Berrutti, agronomist and technical advisor at one o

Uruguays large rice mills, during GRiSPs Global Forum in the

Philippines.

A lesson or AsiaWhile most o the rice in Asia is consumed by the very

poor, there is a rapidly growing middle class buying high-

quality branded rice rom supermarkets, Dr. Bouman said.

Introducing something like the Uruguayan system at a

smaller level could help armers and local rice sectors take

advantage o this.

This is relevant not only or Vietnam but also or other

rice-producing countries in Asia that are undergoing rapid

structural transormation, he concluded.

in motion

A model country. Researchers are looking at Uruguays highlysuccessul rice production model in building high-value rice sectors inAsia to supply global markets.

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Brown planthoppers (BPH) are ecient rice killers when

they occur in large numbers. They pierce the stem and

suck out the sap, causing rice plants to dry out and die.

They can also transmit viruses that cause severe rice diseases.

BPH are regarded as the number-one insect pest o rice

in Asia because o the severe damage they cause, estimated

at 2 to 3 million tons annually, across regions where

outbreaks occur. In 2012, BPH outbreaks in Thailand aected

17 provinces in the Central Plains. In China, the worst

outbreak in 20 years aected more than 5 million hectares in

the southern provinces o Hunan, Guizhou, and Sichuan.

Multinational line o deenseThe war against BPH reached a watershed in 2012. Two

international events, organized under GRiSP, ocused on

building a stronger multinational network to ght this pest

that does not recognize international borders.

More than 160 participants rom Australia, Cambodia,

China, Indonesia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Thailand, IRRI,

and FAO attended the International Conerence on Rice

Planthoppers in China, where new ndings rom sequencing

the planthopper genome were presented. This opens the

door to understanding the genetic diversity and adaptability

o BPH and leads to new ways to manage the pest.

Stopping rice enemy number one

With new planthopper outbreaks occurring at an unprecedented scale, researchers rom across dierent GRiSPorganizations came together as never beore to improve implementation o holistic strategies at ground zeroand to share the growing arsenal that is becoming available to better know and fght this enemy.

Second, partners o the Rice Planthopper Project rom

China, Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines came together

in China and reported that ecological engineering has been

adopted in seven provinces o the Mekong Delta in Vietnam,

three provinces in Thailand, and three counties in China.

Ecological engineering is a management strategy to build

ecological diversity to strengthen the rice elds natural

capacity to cope with pests. It is being promoted by the

project, which is supported by the Asian Development Bank

and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).

Friendly freThe link between how pesticides are supplied, marketed,

and sold and the worsening BPH problem was also presented

at the conerence. Weak marketing regulations, in which

pesticides are sold as ast-moving consumer goods, can

lead to excessive pesticide misuse that contributes to BPH

outbreaks. Thus, there is a need or rice-producing countries

to reorm pesticide marketing regulations.

When there is more ecological diversity in a rice eld,

the biological control o BPH provided by ecosystem service

providers, such as spiders, wasps, parasitoids, and other

predators, is enhanced, IRRI insect ecologist K.L. Heong

in motion

Tiny troublemaker. Despite its minute size, BPHinfict catastrophic losses in rice production acrossAsia by their sheer numbers.

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said. I this is combined with careul insecticide use, then

the occurrence o planthopper outbreaks can be markedly

reduced.

PhilippinesUnder GRiSP, the Bureau o Agricultural Research o the

Philippine Department o Agriculture started a project in

2012 with IRRI and Regional Agricultural Research Centers

to restore and conserve ecosystem service providers

that support eective pest management in rice through

ecological engineering. This will build on the work o the

Rice Planthopper Project to apply ecological engineering

concepts across selected sites in the Philippines.

A cavalry o genesAlongside more ecologically diverse and naturally pest-

resilient rice elds, rice varieties that can resist BPH can

reduce the pests damage. But, as BPH constantly and rapidly

evolve, they can overcome any resistance genes introduced

into rice varieties. Scientists continue to search or genes that

can withstand BPH.

Kshirod Jena, a rice breeder at IRRI, and his team

recently identied new BPH resistance genes (Bph18, Bph20,

and Bph21) that provide broad resistance to BPH populations

in Asia. Dr. Jena and his team have developed a BPH-resistanversion o rice variety IR24, making it easier to transer the

gene into other varieties.

Several GRiSP research partners in other countries are

also incorporating these BPH resistance genes into their elite

rice cultivars. Already, the Cuu Long Delta Rice Research

Institute in Vietnam has developed several BPH-resistant

breeding lines with the Bph18 gene, and nominated them

or varietal release in 2012.

IRRI is continuously developing new generations o

BPH-resistant rice varieties as well as eective deployment

strategies to delay hopper adaptation, and increase geneticresistance or stable rice production. GRiSP speeds up the

sharing o the latest weapons and tactics in the war against

BPH among researchers worldwide. Eventually, armers will

have all the tools and tactics they need to overtake the

enemy.

in motion

Battlefeld scars. The burned-looking rice plants in the oreground are a tell-tale sign o damagecaused by the pest. BPH outbreaks are linked to excessive and improper use o pesticides.

A breeding oensive. Using newly discovered genes, BPH-resistant rice varieties will soon be part o anoverall breeding strategy to counter Asias most devastating insect pest. At the Cuu Long Delta Rice ResearchInstitute in Vietnam, researchers have already developed resistant breeding lines with the Bph18 gene.

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GRiSP contributes to the long-term conservation o rice

biodiversity thanks to the support o donors to the

International Rice Genebank at IRRI. The genebank

holds more than 117,000 types o modern and traditional

rice varieties and wild relatives o rice rom all over the

world. However, armers can also take an active part in rice

conservation locally, particularly o heirloom varieties that

they have been growing or generations.

The Consortium or Unavorable Rice Environments(CURE), a partnership among research and extension

institutions rom South and Southeast Asia and coordinated

by IRRI, assists remote armers not only in saeguarding

ancient rice varieties but also in maintaining traditional

values and culture.

A bankable assetIn the Arakan Valley, in

Cotabato Province,

Philippines,

rice variety Dinorado is more than a crop that commands

a premium price. It is part o the pride and social identity

o the people. But, its quality and commercial value have

deteriorated as the genetic purity o its seed stocks has

declined over time because the armers did not have the

skills to maintain seed quality.

IRRI scientists joined orces with the University o

Southern Mindanao, the Philippine Rice Research Institute,

the Municipal Agricultural Oce o Arakan, and theDepartment o Agriculture to train selected armers in high-

quality seed production, and to introduce modern and other

traditional rice varieties. Ater the training, the armers set up

the Arakan Community Seed Bank Organization (ACSBO).

ACSBO members can borrow a sack o good seeds rom the

bank and pay the bank with two sacks ater their crop is

harvested.

We learned the importance o selecting and cleaning

seeds to ensure that we get quality seeds, said Nestor

Nombreda, president o ACSBO. Using quality seeds, the

Modern arks or ancient rice

In two remote areas in the Philippines, native rice varietiescultivated in traditional waysare sources o oodand income but also have strong cultural currency. GRiSP, through the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI),is helping armers manage these valuable assets by using modern agricultural practices. When armers continue to

grow heirloom rice, they are conserving irreplaceable genetic resources, too.

in motion

House o the past and the uture. Traditional storage houses in northern Luzon,where armers keep their heirloom rice, share something in common with the giantinternational rice genebank at IRRI. They preserve genetic materials that are potentialsources o new traits such as pest and disease resistance.

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plants have a good appearance, good tillers, and large round

grains while low-quality seeds acquire many diseases and

perorm poorly.

ACSBO member Russel Samillano said, Beore, we did

not have seeds to plant in our elds; we had nowhere to buy

seeds rom. Now, we use good seeds rom the seed bank.

Because o this, our amily will not go hungry.

ACSBO members also made extra money selling high-

quality seeds to other armers.

Teaming up the old with the newMeanwhile, at the opposite end o the Philippine

archipelago, armers in remote areas o the Cordillera region

o Luzon are acing similar problems: their age-old rice

terraces are eroding, and the yield o the traditional rice

varieties that their ancestors have cultivated or hundreds

o years is low and unstable. Farmers worry about a lack o

interest in rice arming among the younger generation and

that no one will preserve their ancient traditions.

CURE teamed up with the Second Cordillera Highland

Agricultural Resource Management Project, unded by the

International Fund or Agricultural Development, to train

armers in the region on rural community-improvement

opportunities. Specically, CURE introduced new rice

management technologies and varieties that could help

armers increase productivity and their livelihoods while

maintaining their traditional rice varieties. Technologies such

as community-based rodent control and modern varieties

have merged with traditional systems such as organic

agriculture and the use o heirloom rice.

The conservation o traditional varieties is important

to plant breeding, said Dr. Casiana Vera Cruz, a scientist

at IRRI. They are untapped genetic resources and potential

sources o new traits such as pest and disease resistances as

well as tolerance o the changing climatic conditions.

Global S.O.S.: save old seedsScientists are developing ways to work with armers

to saeguard rice biodiversity by blending modern

seed production technologies and crop management

with traditional practices and heirloom rice varieties.

Strengthening national partnerships under GRiSP allows

the work to thrive and be extended to other communities

worldwide.

Ultimately, this enriches the worlds rice gene pool thatprovides GRiSP organizations across the globe with genetic

knowledge and tools needed to produce varieties to solve

the increasing production and environmental challenges in

the uture.

in motion

Management course. Farmers in Arakan inspect traditional and hybrid rice varietiesgrowing in experimental plots. Management or crop diversity, in which traditional and hybridrice varieties are intercropped, has been proven to promote on-arm conservation o rice.

Their heritage rice. Women armers in Kalinga in the northern part o thePhilippines sort Unoy, an aromatic indigenous variety o rice that is cultivatedusing production practices o their oreathers.

E.DeLeon,IRRI

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Phosphorus is an important plant nutrient, but, when

phosphorus levels in the soil are low, rice plants can

suer rom lower yield. Because almost 60% o rice

is cultivated on fooded or irrigated land that is decient

in phosphorus, phosphorus ertilizer is needed to achieve

optimal yield. But, phosphorus ertilizer is oten too

expensive or poor armers. On problem soils, armers can

apply phosphorus ertilizer but the nutrient can rapidly

attach to soil minerals and no longer be available to plants.

Adding to the problem is that phosphorus is a

nonrenewable natural resource and rock phosphate

reservesthe source o most phosphorus ertilizerare

running out. But, with global demand or phosphate

ertilizer projected to increase rom 41.7 million tons in

2011 to 45 million tons in 2015, according to the Food

and Agriculture Organization, prices are also expected to

rise urther and thus put poor armers at an additional

disadvantage.

Genetic jackpotThe PSTOL1 (phosphorus starvation tolerance 1) gene could

help ease the pressure on phosphorus. It helps rice grow

larger, better root systems that can access more phosphorus.

PSTOL1 was discovered by scientists at IRRI and JIRCAS,

in collaboration with the University o Milano in Italy, the

University o the Philippines Los Baos, and the Institute or

The next big gene on the scene

Agricultural Biotechnology and Genetic Resources Research

and Development in Indonesia. The main nancial support

was provided by the CGIAR Generation Challenge Program,

with supplementary unding rom other donors. This

collaboration is an outstanding example o how GRiSP brings

together partners rom across the world to solve problems in

rice science.

For several years, we have known a major gene

enhancing root growth and phosphorus uptake existed,

said Matthias Wissuwa o JIRCAS. The superior perormance

under phosphorus deciency o rice variety Kasalath,

which was where the PSTOL1 gene was ound, was initially

discovered by Dr. Wissuwa, who then collaborated with IRRI

and shared the DNA inormation.

Sigrid Heuer, a scientist at IRRI and leader o the team

that published the discovery in Nature,1 added, We have

nally hit the jackpot and ound the major gene responsible

or improved phosphorus uptake and we understand how itworks.

A gene o promiseIn pot experiments on soils that are very low in phosphorus,

yield increases due to PSTOL1 can exceed 60%, suggesting

the gene would be very eective in upland rice elds that

1Gamuyao R et al. 2012. The protein kinase Pstol1 rom traditional rice conerstolerance o phosphorus deciency. Nature 488 (7412):535-539.

in motion

Sciensts at the Internaonal Rice Research Instute (IRRI) and Japan Internaonal Research Center for Agricultural

Sciences (JIRCAS)two strategic partners leading GRiSPhave pinpointed the PSTOL1 gene that enables rice plants togrow bigger and beer roots to absorb more phosphorus, an important but limited nutrient. This gene discovery unlocks

the potenal of rice to produce around 20% more grain while reducing the need for expensive phosphorus ferlizer.


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are not irrigated and where armers are oten too poor to

improve their poor soils by applying ertilizer. Field tests in

Indonesia and the Philippines showed that rice with the

PSTOL1 gene produced about 20% more grain than rice

without the gene.

The PSTOL1 gene is also being tested in rice varieties

or the more productive irrigated rice-growing areas and

initial results show that the plants grow a better root system

and have higher production, too. This means it could

help armers in these areas reduce their ertilizer use and

expenditure without compromising productivity, Dr. Heuer

stressed.

New tool or breedingThe discovery o PSTOL1 means that breeders will be able to

develop new rice varieties aster and more easily, and with

100% certainty their new rice will have the gene.

According to Dr. Wricha Tyagi o the School o Crop

Improvement at the Central Agricultural University in the

Indian state o Meghalaya, knowledge o the exact gene will

be critical or uture breeding programs suited to eastern and

northeastern parts o India, where rice productivity is less

than 40% o the national average due to acidic soil and poo

phosphorus availability.

New rice varieties with the enhanced capacity to take up

phosphorus may be available to armers within a ew years.

in motion

The team o scientists who discovered the PSTOL1 gene: (let toright) Rico Gamuyao, J.H. Chin, and Sigrid Heuer rom IRRI, and MatthiasWissuwa rom JIRCAS.

A milestone gene. Researchers will be able to make new ricevarieties that can produce high yields even in phosphorus-decientsoils rom the PSTOL1 breeding lines developed at IRRI.

C

Q i

I R R I

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With a signifcant boost in unding received in 2012, scientists rom various GRiSP partner institutions havemoved closer to developing a prototype o a new super rice, known as C

4rice. It has the potential to produce

50% more grainwith less water and nutrients. I successul, C4

rice could catapult eorts to meet theanticipated global demand or rice and signifcantly contribute to global ood security.

There are classes o plants known as C

3 and C

4

reerring to how they convert (photosynthesize) carbon

dioxide and water, in the presence o sunlight and

chlorophyll, into sugar. C3

photosynthesis is less ecient

at converting inputs to grain than C4

photosynthesis,

which processes resources more eectively or higher

grain production. Rice is a C3

plant, so re-engineering rice

photosynthesis into C4

could be the key to breaking through

that yield barrier.IRRI and its network o partners across GRiSP are

working to install the C4

photosynthetic pathway in rice.

Researchers have already successully introduced 10 out o

the 13 genes needed to develop C4

rice. In the second phase

o the project, the team aims to produce prototypes o C4

rice.

Dream teamModiying rice photosynthesis is a complex undertaking that

involves dierent experts, organizations, and skills. Were

thrilled to be working with the worlds elite in photosynthesisresearch to uncover genetic secrets and understand

biochemical processes to bring rice to a new yield rontier,

says IRRIs Dr. Paul Quick, coordinator o the C4

rice project

that brings together 17 research institutes worldwide.

Creating ways to design new genes, which is required

to make C4

rice, is what Dr. Julian Hibberd and his colleagues

at the University o Cambridge are doing. This work is

complemented by project partners in China led by Dr.

Xinguang Zhu o the Institute or Computational Biology.

Dr. Zhu is developing mathematical models o the lea

anatomy o C4 rice. Finding novel genes by siting throughgenetic codes at dierent stages o lea development is also

an essential part o this ambitious project. Dr. Tom Brutnell

and Dr. Jane Langdale o the Donald Danorth Plant Science

Center and Oxord University, respectively, are on top o this

task.

Once all the necessary elements are in place, Dr. Bob

Furbank at the Commonwealth Scientic and Industrial

Research Organisation will test the C4

prototypes at the

High-Resolution Plant Phenomics Centre in Australia and

select those that show promise.

The making o a super riceThe C

4project was initially unded by the Bill & Melinda

Gates Foundation (BMGF) and IRRI in 2009. For the second

phase o the project that commenced in 2012, BMGF, the

UK government, and IRRI have put $14 million behind it.

This is exactly the sort o innovative scientic research

that the Prime Minister was calling or at the Hunger

Summit at Downing Street earlier this year, said the UK

Parliamentary Under-Secretary o State or International

Development Lynne Featherstone. Rice is the staple ood

or millions across the developing world, so nding a way to

double the amount each plant produces would help to eed

many more o the very poorest. This could prove a critical

breakthrough in eeding an ever-growing number o hungry

mouths.

Other donors are the European Unions 3to4

project and the CGIAR Canada Linkage Fund through a

collaboration between IRRI and the University o Toronto.

Other members o the C4

Rice Consortium are Heinrich

Heine University o Dsseldor, Washington State University,

University o Sheeld, Academia Sinica Taiwan, University o

Minnesota-Minneapolis Campus, University o Nottingham,

Cornell University, Kyung Hee University, James Cook

University, and Australian National University.

Banking on the rice o the uture

in motion

E.Panisales,IRRI


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Cross-breeding between dierent species o rice

can produce new plants that stand up better

to drought, salty soil, diseases, and insect

pests. Since the 1990s, AricaRice has been

crossing Arican rice (Oryza glaberrima), which is

particularly resistant to drought and diseases, with

O. sativa, the high-yielding Asian rice species most

widely grown in the world, to create the New Rice

or Arica (NERICA) varieties.

NERICA rice has been hailed as a majoradvancement or Arica and could help Arica achieve

much higher rice productivity. Currently, 78 NERICA

varieties are available to rice armers in sub-

Saharan Arica, and, by 2011, adoption had

reached more than 700,000 hectares.

The right gene mixThe initial problem in developing NERICA was

that the two dierent rice species produced

sterile ospring that could not be used to grow crops.

Scientists at AricaRice overcame this by repeatedlybackcrossing into Asian rice to restore ertility.

Although the early NERICA crosses exhibited

low susceptibility to disease and insect attacks,

the backcrossing process reduced the proportion

o the Arican rice genome in the nal NERICA

varieties, consequently reducing the desired tolerance

o pests.

I we were to increase the proportion o O. glaberrima

genes, would we get better varieties? Dr. Mand Semon,

an upland rice breeder at AricaRice, wondered. He proposed

reversing the gene route and bringing the desirable genesrom Asian rice into Arican rice instead. However, sterility

was still going to be a problem.

The bridge rom sterility to ertilityTo solve this problem, the iBridges (interspecic Bridges)

project was launched in 2005 as a close cooperation among

IRD, CIAT, AricaRice, the Philippine Rice Research Institute,

and Arican national agronomic research bodies such as

the Institute o Rural Economy in Mali and the Institute

o Environment and Agricultural Research in Burkina

Faso. Originally supported by the CGIAR Generation

Challenge Program, the second phase o iBridges is now

being advanced under GRiSP.

Cutting-edge research under Mathias Lorieux, IRD

director o research and plant geneticist at CIAT, led to

the ne mapping o the S1 gene, previously identied

as a key actor in interspecic sterility. Using the rice

genome maps developed by the Oryza Map Alignment

Project, the researchers identied the portion o the

chromosome responsible or sterility.

This resulted in the design o a genetic model that

explains the sterility o interbred descendants, and opens

the way to urther research into the genetic control o

sterility, said Dr. Lorieux, who is also the iBridges co-project

leader along with Dr. Alain Ghesquiere o IRD.

Being able to identiy the ew and rare ertile

individuals rom interspecic crosses early in the breeding

process eliminates many stages previously required or

interspecic breeding and accelerates the development

o new and improved Arican-Asian varieties that ully

embrace the rich diversity o Arican rice alongside that o

Asian rice.

Open poolThanks to the partnerships that are being ostered by GRiSP,

plant breeders now have access to the complete genetic

diversity available in Arican rice. Under GRiSP, the iBridges

project aims to develop new and ertile rice varieties derived

rom crosses between elite O. sativa and O. glaberrima rice

varieties.

We hope that the iBridges will make a signicant

breakthrough in improving Arican rice varieties, said Dr.

Lorieux. It is the Arican rice armers who will directly

benet rom this technology, and this will certainly

contribute to Aricas ood security.

Achieving ood security in Arica largely depends on growing high-yielding crops, such as rice, that are also welladapted to the continents harsh environment. GRiSP, through the Institut de Recherche pour le Dveloppement(IRD), International Center or Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), and Arica Rice Center (AricaRice), is building geneticbridges between Arican and Asian rice to accelerate the development o new robust and high-yielding rice

varieties suitable or Arica.

Genetic bridges between Arica and Asia

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Rice consumption in West Arica has been growing at

6% annually since 1973 as the staple diet in the region

continues to shit rom traditional coarse grains, roots,

and tubers. More than a third o cereal calorie intake in West

Arica is provided by rice and consumption is expected to

continue to rise. Rice has become a strategic commodity inthe region, according to the Economic Community o West

Arican States (ECOWAS), a consortium o West Arican

countries, which has allocated resources or the development

o rice arms and to double total production by 2017.

Outside pressureBut, in addition to its own production limitations, West

Aricas rice industry conronts the availability o imported

rice.

A major challenge or the development o the ricesector in sub-Saharan Arica is the volume o rice imports,

explains AricaRice policy economist Jeanne Coulibaly. One

contributory actor to the continuing increase in imports is

the low tari on imported rice.

Compared to other major grains, rice trading is widely

subject to protectionist policies enorced by dierent

countries based on national policies on ood security, support

or domestic producers, and price stability. But it is least

protected in Arica, particularly West Arica. Although East

Arican taris are about 75%, ECOWAS has recommended

a Common External Tari (CET) o only 10% or rice since2006. Some countries and stakeholders in West Arica

consider this protection too liberal to contribute to achieving

the regional objective o sel-suciency in rice. In act, rom

2010 to 2012, rice imports into the region increased by

21%, despite domestic production increases since 2008.

Along with other players in the rice sector, we believe

that an increase in import tari would provide an incentive

Domesticating West Aricas rice marketAlthough a substantial increase in rice production hasbeen observed since the 2008 ood price spike, thelocal rice sector in sub-Saharan Arica continues to

struggle against cheap imports. GRiSP partner AricaRice Center (AricaRice) is working with regionalpartners to promote economic policies that willprotect and ensure a sustainable increase in local riceproduction.

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15

or local armers to increase rice production, says Dr.

Coulibaly.

In September, the Network o Farmers and Agricultural

Producers Organizations o West Arica (ROPPA) andAricaRice organized a refection and consultation workshop

on the reclassication o the rice CET in ECOWAS countries.

Participants agreed that an increase in the CET o rice to

35% was appropriate to control imports and support the

development o the rice sector.

However, ECOWAS has so ar ailed to raise the rice

CET. ROPPA is lobbying national governments and ECOWAS

on the agreements reached at the workshop. Meanwhile,

AricaRice has begun a study on the likely impacts o the

proposed change in tari on local rice production and

households welare.

Regional rice oensiveMany organizations are working toward the goal o rice

sel-suciency, says Dr. Coulibaly. But, these initiatives are

not well coordinated and harmonized. Since the 2008 ood

crisis, many Arican countries have prepared national rice

development strategies with support rom AricaRice as part

o the Coalition or Arican Rice Development, but these say

very little about regionality.

AricaRice thereore supports the idea o a regional

oensive, led by ECOWAS, to support all rice-sector

initiatives in the region, with a ocus on what can most

eectively be achieved regionally, such as regional storage,

bulk purchase, and tari policies.

The goal o the new oensive is to reach regional rice

sel-suciency by 2018. The objectives are to improve rice

production sustainably, to promote the regional rice value

chain, and to create a suitable institutional environment to

support the oensives goal.

Once a easibility study has been conducted, a business

meeting will be arranged to source unding or the oensiveDialogue at the regional level is very important or

the sustainable development o the rice sector, to achieve

regional sel-suciency in line with ECOWAS policy

objectives, concludes Dr. Coulibaly. The CET must not be

the only ocuswe need policy advocacy and investment in

all segments o the rice value chain, especially or processing

and marketing.

in motion

R.Raman,AfricaRice


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Brandingwhich includes advertising, packaging, logos,

taglines, and other marketing activitiescreates an

emotional response rom consumers when thinking

about a product. The right branding can give a product an

edge in the marketplace by giving it a premium actor that

customers are willing to pay or even i cheaper alternatives

are available.

Having been rocked by the rice price crisis o 2007-

08, Senegals government began a large-scale agricultural

oensive or ood and abundance to increase domesticrice production. Then, in 2011, Senegalese rice importers

(who are keen to diversiy their business to include the

domestic rice value chain), producers, and processors created

a commercial venture to buy, mill, and market local rice

to Senegalese consumers. In the process o progressively

upgrading the value chain or local rice (to enable it to

compete with imported brands), the next big question is

how to market local rice to Arican consumers.

The brandname gameAricaRice value-chain economist Matty Demont, Fulbright

research ellow Caitlin Costello, and sociologist Mamouna

Ndour examined the role o labeling in raising demand

or local rice varieties in Dakar and Saint-Louis. The rice

markets in these cities use two types o branding to sell

imported rice. Some brands are labeled in French or Wolo

(the national and local languages, respectively) with images

indicative o Senegal or Arica (or example, a baobab tree,

a drum, or a lion) to portray a local image. Others arelabeled in French or English with images unrelated to Arica

(or example, a rose, a U.S. fag, or a star) to portray an

international image.

According to the research team, a key question in the

marketing o local rice is, Should local rice brands mimic

imported brands or should they create a distinctive identity?

Eight prototype brands were designed. Four o them

two local and two internationalwere selected through

A rice by any other name

Boosting production and improving quality have not been enough to help locally produced rice in Senegal in thefght against imported brands, which still dominate in many urban markets. GRiSP partner Arica Rice Center(AricaRice) has thereore been looking at the role o branding and labeling in consumers perceptions.

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M.Dermont,AfricaRice


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17

preerred, regardless o whether it was local or international.

Since the rice used in the two bags was identical, the label

added 17% to the value o the rice to the consumers.

Although 70% o the consumers in Saint-Louis (close to the

production zone) preerred the local brands, this dropped to

55% in the capital Dakar, showing that more women in the

metropolis were brand-sensitive to an international image.

The implication is that local rice will best be sold under

a local brand in Saint-Louis, whereas local and international

brands are likely to be equally popular in Dakar.

In January 2013, the womens association Khar Yalla

Gueye at Pont Gendarme in the Senegal River valley started

selling local rice under the new local brand Ndanane,

meaning nobleman in Wolo.

a participatory choice experiment conducted with local

womens associations and then tested through experimental

auctions with consumers in the two cities. The sample

consumers were women shopping in the markets, as earlier

research had indicated that women are the dominant

decision-makers and buyers o rice in Senegal.

The same rice, dierent perceptionsThe women were asked to express a preerence between

one local and one international brand. They were then

permitted to sample the rice in the sacks and vote again.

What the women didnt know was that the same high-

quality local rice variety was in both sacks.

An experimental auction showed that consumers

typically placed 17% greater value on the brand they

in motion

Whats in a brandname? A research team romAricaRice is studying how marketing infuencesconsumer behavior and purchasing decisionsandcould this connection create a substantial shit tohigher sales o locally produced rice?


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CSISAs wheel o inormationNamed ater a bicycle wheel, which has a central hub with

a series o connecting spokes, the hub and spoke model

greatly simplies a network o routes, making overall

operations more ecient. This model was adopted by CSISA

and is proving to be eective when it comes to relaying

agricultural technology and inormation rom centers o

research and knowledge out to those who need them themostarmers.

Customizing communications or localaudiencesUsing rice hubs, GRiSP partners the Cereal Systems Initiative or South Asia (CSISA) and Arica Rice Center

(AricaRice) are able to deliver inormation and technology tailored to the needs and situations o local armingcommunities.

Shortcut to South Asias armersCSISA implemented this model to encourage aster

dissemination o inormation to improve arm productivity

and armer income. It set up a network o 13 hubs (6 in

Bangladesh, 5 in India, 1 each in Pakistan and Nepal) to serve

armers in the region. Each hub has a manager, an extension

worker, and several eld sta.

Led by Technical Working Groups, the hubs have adecentralized and localized decision-making process and

they conduct workshops to identiy, set, and implement

technology targets and work plans tailor-made or their

respective localities.

A hubs output reaches armers through the spokes

partners with complementary stakes in the growth o the

arming industry in their area. They include government

research and extension agencies, nongovernment

organizations (NGOs), private seed companies,

manuacturers o arm equipment and supplies, armers

organizations, banks, and local media. CSISA now has morethan 350 partners.

The ecient and quick transer o knowledge has

created an engine or growth o the agricultural sector.

CSISA has reached more than 150,000 armers in South

Asia, resulting in the transormation o rural households.

Sowing rice centers across AricaAs part o its 2011-20 Strategic Plan, AricaRice is working

with its partners across the continent to set up Rice Sector

Development Hubs to concentrate research and development

eorts, establish a critical mass, connect partners along therice value chain, and acilitate the spread o innovations.

The hubs are testing grounds or new rice technologies and

ollow a reverse-research approach, that is, starting rom

the market.

The hubs bring together large groups o armers

(1,0005,000) and partners rom the whole rice value

chaininput suppliers, seed producers, processors, millers,

wholesalers, retailers, and consumersto acilitate change.

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CSISA


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These represent key rice-

growing environments and

dierent market opportunities

across Arican countries, and

will be linked to major national

or regional rice development

eorts to speed up wider

adoption o rice knowledge and

technologies.

The geographic positioning

o each hub is determined in

national workshops convened

by the national agricultural

research and extension systems.

By the end o 2012, national

partners had identied 54 hubs

in 19 West, Central, and East

Arican countries.

Setting Aricas prioritiesIn 2012, as a rst step, national

scientists, extension workers,

and NGOs identied the actors

that limit rice productivity

and quality through surveys

conducted in the 19 countries

with value-chain partners.

They then tested and adapted

innovations developed through

GRiSP, Arica Rice Task Forces,

and local innovations through

participatory learning and action

research with rst-generation

value-chain stakeholders.

The second generation

gains access to the validated

technologies, knowledge, and

institutional arrangements via

training o trainers (or capacity

building), exchange visits, and

video materials.

Once these mechanisms

have validated the technologies,

development partners will take

the lessons and principles and

make them available to the

wider community served by the

hubs and beyond to achieve

development impact.

in motion

Custom-made or armers. Rice hubs are a knowledge-sharing and communication platorm or linking armers,agri-service businesses, the public and private sector, the scientic community, and other stakeholders in SouthAsia. Through rice hubs, such as those in Bangladesh (see map on opposite page), CSISA can deliver location-based inormation that accelerates the impact o agricultural investments across South Asia.

S.Clayton,IRRI

R.Rama

nAfricaRice

Targeting an audience. Glazou, an important rice zone in Benin, has been chosen as one o the countrysrice hubs where research and development activities are conducted in collaboration with NARES, academicinstitutions, advanced research institutes, armers organizations, nongovernment organizations, and donorsor the benet o Arican armers, mostly small-scale producers, as well as the millions o Arican amilies whodepend on rice or ood.


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Cambodia has achieved a remarkable eat with its

rice production. Just over a decade ago, its state o

agriculture was nothing more than rubble rom its

civil war. Today, agriculture ocials project that Cambodia

could export 1 million tons o milled rice by 2015. But, this

loty target depends on the nations ability to raise its rice

productivity and maintain the fexibility o its rice production

systems.

CAVAC, an initiative o the Australian Centre orInternational Agricultural Research, is a program in which

Australian partners, including the Australian Government

Overseas Aid Program, New South Wales Department o

Primary Industries, and the University o South Australia, are

working with IRRI and Cambodian institutes to help armers

maximize their cropping opportunities and help the country

meet its production target. The program zeroes in on Takeo,

Kampong Thom, and Kampot provinces, where rice is the

main source o subsistence, although armers also trade rice

locally.

Revising the rice calendarRice is mainly grown in Cambodia rom June to December

as the monsoon rains set in, according to David Johnson,

who leads IRRI activities on crop establishment. There are

opportunities, though, to establish the rice crop earlier with

direct seeding rather than transplanting, and as a dry-season

crop ater the rains, he said. Further productivity can be

realized by the use o short-duration varieties that mature

within 110120 days.

We established eld trials to test short-duration

varieties so that armers could grow rice at least twice ayear, explained Dr. Johnson. As part o the bigger initiative

that Australia is unding, theyre also supporting an IRRI

rice breeder at the Cambodian Agricultural Research and

Development Institute who is helping develop short-duration

rice varieties.

Other institutes are also taking active roles in

transorming Cambodias rice sector. The Royal University

o Agriculture will train the next generation o rice armers

Cambodias rice feld o dreams

Development can take time, but change is defnitely happening in Cambodia as it plans to produce 4 milliontons o paddy surplus and export 1 million tons o milled rice. With support rom the Australian government, theCambodian Agricultural Value Chain (CAVAC) program was established by Australian partners, and works with

the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in alignment with GRiSP and other institutes in Cambodia to helparmers maximize their productivity.

in motion

Breaking new grounds. Cambodia is working through GRiSP in making

its rice sector more productive through better farming technologies such

as the useof laser leveling. Laser leveling reduces the cost of irrigation an

improves crop establishment of dry-seeded rice.

A sign o things to come. Cambodia's rice elds may produce 4 milltons o surplus grain and the country has plans to export 1 million tonsmilled rice by 2015.


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Laser leveling reduces the cost o irrigation because

less water is needed to food the eld or ecient

weed control, said Martin Gummert, IRRIs postharvest

and machinery expert. And, it results in better crop

establishment when using direct seeding, which also

translates to a better harvest.

Using one laser land leveler that IRRI provided to the

Department o Agricultural Machinery and another one rom

CAVAC, 30 hectares o arm elds in Kampot were leveled in

2012.

The technology that we introduced is also included in

a 5-hectare demonstration rice arm at Don Bosco School in

Battambang, and in other national programs with unding

rom the Cambodian government and oreign partners,

Engr. Gummert said.

Mr. Chan Saruth, director o the Department o

Agricultural Engineering, General Directorate o Agriculture,

Ministry o Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries in Cambodia,

reported the eect o laser leveling on rice productivity.

Ater armers harvested their rice, they had their rice elds

laser leveled as part o a demonstration we organized in

2012, he said. As a result, we noted rice yields increased

signicantly by 20% to 30%.

in motion

while the Rice Department o the General Directorate o

Agriculture will be responsible or rice crop extension.

Another alternative is to use dierent methods

o establishing the rice crop. We have systems o

mechanization or wet and dry direct seeding that take place

at dierent times o the year, so we currently have three

dierent establishment options or armers, Dr. Johnson

continued.

Dry seeding as we come out o the dry season and

beore the main rains really start, and wet seeding ater the

rains have passed and as the foods start to recede. In the

middle o the rainy season, transplanting can be done.

As the windows o operation can be quite narrow,

were looking at how machines can help armers get their

rice crop planted on time so they can schedule three crops a

year to maximize productivity, Dr. Johnson concluded.

Laser beam armingLaser leveling is the process o leveling the land surace

using a laser transmitter and a drag bucket that armers

use to move soil rom one area to another. Compared with

traditional methods, laser leveling is a better way o making

the eld surace uniormly fat.

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In 1991, WARDA (now AricaRice) and its partners in

the national agricultural research and extension systems

(NARES) initiated Rice Task Forcesa research partnership

mechanism or collaboration, sharing o resources, capacity

building, and development o critical mass or research.

How it worksThe essential premise o the new Task Forces is that they

bring together AricaRice/GRiSP and NARES rom all over

Arica in a partnership based on principles o sustainability

and building critical mass.

There are our key elements to achieving impact rom

GRiSP research or development in Arica, says AricaRice

deputy director general Marco Wopereis. First, we need to

rebuild critical mass in rice research in Aricathis is what

we do through our Arica-wide Rice Task Forces. This is

crucial on a continent where specialist researchers are ew

and ar between. For example, there may be just one rice

agronomist in a particular country, with the risk that they

become isolated and out o touch with what is going onelsewhere on the continent and beyond.

Attaining critical mass is not only a matter o pooling

resources but also re-building human capacity through short

training courses on specic topics, degree training, and

training o trainers. In the Breeding Task Force, we ound

a disconnect between thesis research and the real problems

that breeders should be addressing in their home countries,

says Rice Breeding Task Force coordinator Moussa Si. I

believe that a solution to this would be to oer sandwich

courses in which the students spend as much time at their

home institution tackling real-lie concerns as they do at theuniversity learning the principles and methods.

This ties in with Dr. Wopereiss next point: We need

to ensure that these researchers are connected with the real

rice world (avoiding scientic islands). Consequently, Task

Force activities are, as much as possible, integrated into and

conducted in the Rice Sector Development Hubs in a value-

chain context.

Beyond the good old times

In 2010, the Second Arica Rice Congress supported the re-establishment o a research collaboration mechanismthat served West Arica well in the 1990s and early 2000s. GRiSP partner Arica Rice Center (AricaRice) has takenthe reins in re-animating the Rice Task Forces throughout the continent.

in motion

Through our work in the hubs, we also concentrate

our eorts in certain geographic areas while covering the

whole rice value chain. And, last but not least, we need

to communicate what we

are doing to learn rom our

successes and ailures, Dr.

Wopereis says.

This requires working in

well-dened partnerships with

clear roles and responsibilities.

The Arica-wide Rice Task Forces

are aligned with the main

thematic areas o GRiSP, and can

thereore leverage knowledge

rom other continents and rom

within Arica. They also serve as

on-the-job training grounds or

young scientists.

Variations on a themeBy March 2013, there will

be a ull complement o

Arica-wide Rice Task Forces

covering breeding, agronomy,

processing and value addition,

mechanization, policy, and

gender. The six task orces are

all interconnected and share the

same basic modus operandi, but

each is a variation on the theme.

For example, the RiceAgronomy Task Force works

with armers to develop baskets

o good agricultural practices

and evaluates varieties rom the

Rice Breeding Task Force or a

piece o new equipment, such

as a rotary weeder developed

by the Rice Mechanization Task

Force.


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More than in the past, researchers in task orces

work on large overarching themes, using common

methodologies and approaches, instead o discrete projects,

says Dr. Wopereis. That will enable powerul cross-country

comparisons and enable much aster transer o ideas

and technologies rom one country or region to another.

The other dierence is that we are now concentrating

and integrating the work o Task Forces in well-dened

geographic areas, the hubs. This will allow us to work in

a much more systematic manner towards outcome and

impact.

in motion

Women o orce. Women in Ndour Ndour, Senegal,discuss a resource map they generated as part o theGender Task Force climate change study,

23


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Ask Arican rice armers what problems they ace and

the chances are that weeds will be near the top o

the list. According to GRiSP surveys conducted across

20 Arican countries, armers see weeds as the most serious

problem in rice production on the continent. In sub-Saharan

Arica, annual rice production losses caused by weeds areestimated to reach at least 2.2 million tons. This is equal

to about 10 million hectares o rice annually, according to

AricaRice.

Identity crisisFarmers usually have local names or their most common

weeds, including names o well-known personalities rom

everyday lie. In some French-speaking countries, the worst

weeds are simply reerred to as Sida, which is French or

AIDS, the dreaded human disease.

Local names allow armers to communicate aboutweeds and weed management within a community, but a

more ormal identication is needed to mobilize knowledge

rom outside the community on a specic weed or group o

weeds.

The projectArican weeds o rice (AFROweeds)

implemented by CIRAD and AricaRice, and led by CIRAD

weed scientist Thomas Le Bourgeoisbrought together the

inormation available in West and East Arica and Europe to

To advise armerson how to deal

with weed problemsin their felds, extensionagents, lead armers, andother change agents operatingin sub-Saharan Arica frst needto be comortable with identiying

such weeds. GRiSP partners Centre decoopration internationale en rechercheagronomique pour le dveloppement (CIRAD)and Arica Rice Center (AricaRice) thereoredeveloped sotware to help identiy almost200 o the commonest weeds o rice in

Aricaonline, o-line, or via a smartphoneor tablet.

establish a comprehensive online tool (AFROweeds Identikit)

and knowledge base or identiying and managing weeds in

rice in Arica.

Weeding out guesswork

The identication tool works very dierently rom a classicabotanical key; it is much more user-riendly, as it does

not require the user to be an expert in botany, explains

AricaRice weed scientist Jonne Rodenburg. The user selects

the most eye-catching characteristics o the plant to be

identied and indicates in pictorial multiple-choice menus

what the character looks like.

The Identikit progressively narrows down the number o

possible species with each choice. The user can review the

results at any moment. Clicking on the species names in the

list o likely ts accesses species pages rom the database

with inormation on ecology, biology, and distribution. Userscan also compare the plant being examined with eld and

herbarium photos.

Weed identication can be helpul in choosing the

best management strategy, explains Dr. Rodenburg. The

database linked to the tool also provides inormation on

eective management. Sometimes this is species specic,

but oten the advice is meant or a group o species such as

grasses, sedges, or annual species.

Name that weed!

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D.Makokha,AfricaRice


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The weed identication tool is available or ree online

(at www.aroweeds.org/idao/) and has been adapted

or smartphones, tablet computers, and other mobile

devices. Tablets preloaded with the app were distributed to

participants o the AFROweeds project closing workshop.

We expect to receive eedback rom users on the tools

unctionalities and useulness, in order to urther improve it,

explains Dr. Pierre Grard, CIRAD botanist/computer scientist,

who was in charge o the development o the Identikit.

Facebook or weedsApart rom the tool, the AricaRiceCIRAD team established

an open-access online Arican weed science network called

Weedsbook(at www.aroweeds.org/network). This online

network enables students, lecturers, extension workers,

and researchers to exchange inormation on all aspects o

weed science, rom identication to management, explains

Dr. Rodenburg. It is comparable to social networks like

Facebook, but with a proessional objective dedicated to

weeds.

Farmers will eventually benet rom these

investments through interaction with better-inormed

change agents. Use o the Identikit will allow them

to discover the real identity o particularly obnoxious

weeds on Aricas rice arms, known without doubt by

many armers under a wide range o local names.

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Rice is the rst ood crop or which

the complete genome sequence

is available to researchers all over

the globe. The completed genetic map

o rice is a key tool or plant breeders,

but it requires highly specialized

skills in biotechnology to convert the

knowledge into a new rice variety.

Although biotechnology breedingapproaches have the potential to

be used to develop unique rice with

benecial traits, the technology has not

been widely deployed or the benet o

developing countries. The lack o skilled

researchers in these countries has

prevented biotechnology rom being

ully integrated into their breeding

programs.

Breaking the biotech barrierIt was a proud moment or three students rom West Aricaparticipating in their PhD graduation ceremony at the

University o KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, South Arica.

Mounirou El-Hassimi Sow o Niger, Honor Kam o

Burkina Faso, and Kouadio Nasser Yao o Cte dIvoire

all had worked in the biotechnology laboratory o Arica

Rice Center (AricaRice) in Benin, under the supervision o

Marie-Noelle Ndjiondjop. Their sense o pride was shared by

Gustave Djedatin rom Benin, who successully deended his

PhD thesis in ront o an international panel o scientists at

the University o Abomey-Calavi in Benin.These students have each made major contributions

to global knowledge o rice in Arica, declared Pro. Mark

Laing, director, Arican Centre or Crop Improvement at the

University o KwaZulu-Natal. They are also keen to apply

their newly acquired skills in their respective countries.

Their doctoral research was supported through a

USAID-unded AricaRice project on the application o

marker-assisted selection (MAS)a method to help breeders

incorporate useul genes and their associated traits into new

rice varieties.

Their aim was to nd solutions to rice yellow mottle

virus (RYMV) inection and two other devastating rice pests

and diseases. Arican rice gall midge and bacterial lea blight

As part o their studies, the students traveled thousands o

kilometers by motorcycle and boat to interview rice armers

and collect their local varieties. Mounirou, or instance,

collected about 270 local rice varieties, many o which ace

extinction. These varieties were then characterized through

eld trials and DNA proles or use as parental material inbreeding or RYMV resistance.

The making o a work orceIn rice breeding, the eciency o MAS to transer major rice

genes is now widely recognized as it oers rice breeders a

better opportunity to develop varieties that are resistant to

diseases and pests and tolerant o abiotic stresses such as

drought and salinity.

A new breed o breedersIn 2012, GRiSP partners across both the public and private sector provided advanced biotechnology training in aconcerted international eort to improve the skills o rice breeders in developing countries with the most modernbreeding methods. The result? New breeders rom across the rice-growing world now have the expertise todevelop new rice varieties, with traits o use and value to their local rice sector, which was not possible throughconventional breeding methods.

Improving the breeder. Dr. Mounirou Sow rom Niger, a breeder trained in biotechnology, is helpingnational researchers in other Arican countries to apply molecular biology techniques.

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However, many developing countries lack adequate

local research capacity in this area. In response to a

strong demand rom its member countries, AricaRice is

progressively helping develop a work orce o national

researchers trained to apply molecular biology techniques

critical to solving agricultural problems.

For Dr. Ndjiondjop, the overall strategy is to advance

Arica toward the concept o modern breeders to

eciently exploit this potential or ood security in Arica.

AricaRice has also trained more than 60 NARES

researchers, including PhD and MSc students rom Arica, in

molecular breeding.

This training o rice breeders in MAS and other modern

biotechnology techniques to improve breeding is part

o a bigger global eort by GRiSP partners to improve

biotechnology skills o rice researchers within developing

countries.

Transorming rice scientistsIn 2012, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI)

in the Philippines conducted the Advanced Indica Rice

Transormation Coursethe rst time the Institute provided

training on the genetic modication o rice. Indica, the rice

most produced in South and Southeast Asia, is a broad

group o many dierent types o rice that are usually grown

in hot climates.

Nine public- and private-sector participants rom across

a mix o dierent GRiSP partners rom China, Colombia,

India, Indonesia, Nepal, the Philippines, and the U.S.

attended the training. They had hands-on experience and

learned about biosaety issues and international guidelines

or biosaety management in research.

Ater this training, Im hoping that I will be able to put

some genes into rice plants and especially in indica varieties,

which are more susceptible to drought and nematodes, said

Ms. Ritushree Jain, an Indian national who is doing her PhD

at the University o Leeds in the UK. A lot o rice cultivation

is aected by drought, and nematode inestation, and this is

a big problem.

My hope is that I will be able to nd some genes to

integrate into Indian rice varieties and develop something

new that will help armers, she added.

Mastering a new skill. Participants in the Advanced Indica Rice Transormation Course learn rice improvement techniques not possible throughconventional breeding in IRRIs Genetic Transormation Laboratory.

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The increasing cost o a college education and the

dramatic decline in the number o students enrolling in

agriculture programs will aect how the world meets

the challenges to ood security brought about by continuous

population growth, the degradation and growing scarcity o

natural resources, and climate change. Empowering young

people to become catalysts o change can help solve many

o these problems.

The Global Rice Science Scholarship initiated by GRiSP

aims to increase technical and research capacity globally in

tackling the major and current problems in rice production.

These scholarships oer young agricultural scientists a

tremendous opportunity to develop and lead in their eld o

expertise related to agronomy, crop physiology, entomology,

plant pathology, soil and water science, plant breeding, and

social sciences.

GRiSP partners provide young scientists with scholarships in the various felds o rice science. But, more than highereducation, the ultimate goal is to develop the next generation o leaders, movers, and shakers who will ace thetough challenge o fghting poverty, combating hunger, and ueling rice productivity growth in the uture.

Under GRiSP, the hosting institutions o IRRI, Arica Rice,

CIAT, CIRAD, and IRD have been provided with unding to

support 31 scholars rom Asia (17), Arica (9), South America

(4), and Europe (1).

Return on investmentInvesting in brilliant young students can return great

benets, not only to the students but also to the entire rice

sector.

IRD-CIRAD PhD scholar Phung Thi Phuong Nhung

started her project in 2011 on identiying new genes and

alleles associated with root developmental traits in a core

collection o Vietnamese rice varieties. She has recently

identied 214 varieties collected and grouped them based

on their root system.

Building the oundation o rice science

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I eel very lucky to have been chosen as a scholar, she

says. This allowed me to nish my data collection.

Ms. Nhungs work is important because water scarcity

or rice production is an imminent threat due to climate

change. By 2025, it is estimated that 1520 million hectares

o irrigated rice will suer some degree o water scarcity and

her ndings could very well be part o the solution.

Strong leadership at every level is critical to rice science

i it wants to continue making a valuable contribution to

global ood security. In partnership with the University o

Leuven in Belgium, IRRI launched a pilot program designed

to create uture leaders and innovators in 2012. A total o

23 participants were selected rom Asia (17), Arica (4), and

South America (2).

The course on Enhancing Global Rice Science Leadership

was directed toward improving the impact o knowledge

rom research organizations, particularly targeting the

poorest areas o Asia and Arica, by ensuring improved

skills and competencies in research leadership. It included

personality development and enhancement o technical skills

or project management and leadership, an Action Learning

Project in the participants own environment, and a period o

refection and urther learning.

As a PhD scholar o CIAT and the University o

Melbourne, Laura Moreno o Colombia says that the course

gave her the incredible opportunity to get in touch with

many uture leaders rom dierent cultures and visit rice

armers and understand the problems that aect their lives.

She adds that the course taught her sel-organization and

time management that she has put into practice during her

studies.

IRRI Training Center Head Noel Magor shares that the

course helped equip young scientists with knowledge, skills,

competencies, and condence to better dene, manage, and

communicate research and perorm their leadership roles.

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Open classrooms. GRiSP scholars embark on a learning journey to interview armers in Rizal, a province in the Philippines, as part o their training todevelop their technical skills or project management and leadership.


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The act that rice usually grows in a eld fooded

with water makes rice arming a source o the

potent greenhouse gas (GHG) methane. When

rice elds are fooded, the layer o water prevents

oxygen rom the atmosphere rom penetrating

the soil. In the absence o oxygen, organisms

known as methanogenic bacteria thrive and

decompose organic matter in the soil. This

biological process produces methane

gas, which escapes to the atmosphere

through dierent ways, one o whichis through the rice plant.

Globally, this type o rice

production accounts or 10%

to 14% o the total methane

emissions through human

activity. The key to reducing

methane generation by rice

cultivation is better water

management practices.

Farmer-riendly technologyThis is where water-saving

technologies, such as AWD

technology, come in. AWD was developed

and validated by IRRI and its national agricultural

research and extension system partners in Asia in response to

increasing water scarcity.

Simple and inexpensive, AWD technology allows rice

armers to dry their elds or a certain number o days ater

ponded water has disappeared. It is also highly suited or

irrigated rice-based systems, which account or 75% o

global rice production.

AWD could reduce water use by as much as 30%,

while maintaining yield at the level o that o fooded

rice, says Dr. Ruben Lampayan, IRRI water scientist. This

technology has been adopted and widely promoted in

Vietnam, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

Cleaner armingAWD technology also has the potential to reduce methane

emissions rom rice elds by more than 50%, depending

on soil type and weather. In 2012, the United Nations

Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)

included the AWD technology as part o a certied

Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) methodology.

This methodology can now be used in CDM projects

under which carbon credits can be claimed

or applying water-saving techniques in rice

production. Carbon credits were introduced inthe Kyoto Protocol as a means or climate-

riendly development.

According to the CDM methodology

a rice armer practicing AWD could get

carbon credits or approximately 4 tons

o carbon dioxide equivalents per hectare

per season rom a certied CDM project,

and these credits could then be sold on

international carbon markets, explains

Bjoern Ole Sander, a climate change

scientist at IRRI.

Green incentiveFarmers can take advantage o the carbon credits

earned rom adopting AWD technology. An agriculture-

related organization can help local armers draw up working

plans or a CDM project or oer the additional input

required to make a project nancially viable or local armers

For example, an agency that manages the irrigation

system where armers pay a service ee can be the project

developer, adds Dr. Sander. The money rom the carbon

credits they sell could be used to subsidize the cost o

pumping irrigation water or improve irrigation acilities.

GRiSP provided additional unds to support the

dissemination o AWD technology throughout the

Philippines, Vietnam, Laos, Indonesia, and Bangladesh.

Through GRiSP, Drs. Lampayan and Sander were able to

work with other research and extension institutions or

cleaner, more ecient rice production while improving

armers livelihood and ood security.

The alternate-wetting-and-drying (AWD) technology developed by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI),a GRiSP partner, not only saves water in rice felds but also helps reduce agricultures methane emissions. Now,armers applying this simple and inexpensive technology could potentially earn extra income rom the carbon creditmarket.

Earth-cooling technology

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Extra credit or being clean. Flux chambersare used to measure GHG emissions on anexperimental station in Vietnam. ThroughAWD technology, armers can reduce thecarbon ootprint o rice arming and earn

carbon credits.

Bjoern Ole Sander


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Rice is a staple in many Arican countries.

However, Aricas rice sector relies

heavily on imports to satisy the

increasing demand or rice because

the potential o local production

remains largely untapped.

Unlike Asia, Arica still has

a large reservoir o underused

agricultural land and

water resources, according

to AricaRice. Yet, Asia

continues to enjoy higher rice

productivity because most o

Aricas production increase has

come rom area expansion rather

than intensication. These increases

are not keeping pace with demand.

Reducing reliance on imports and increasing

production sustainably are thereore major goals o any ood

security strategy in Arica.

Knowledge gaps across AricaAricaRice and its partners have set up task orces across

the continent, which will operate under GRiSP, to accelerate

the delivery o new rice technologies. The task orces will

ocus their research and development eorts on breeding,

agronomy, postharvest, and value addition, as well as policy

and gender, in 59 rice-sector development hub locations in

20 countries. The hubs will require accurate and up-to-date

spatial inormation on where and how rice is currently being

cultivated, and the areas most suitable or uture production

expansion. The mapping o rice in Arica will contribute

to the successul dissemination o the technologies

demonstrated in the hubs to the armers.

There is a large body o work on mapping and

monitoring rice environments in Asia, said Dr. Andy

Nelson, head o the GIS group at IRRI that develops spatial

inormation on rice across Asia or mapping rice areas, their

cropping patterns, and their social and environmental

characteristics. But there has been little work to

assess how much o this can be translated

and applied to Arican conditions.

The rapid growth in rice production

and consumption and the lack o

inormation on where this is occurring

and the impact that this growth is

having both suggest that such an

assessment is overdue.

Re-mapping o AricaUsing partnership development unds

rom GRiSP, AricaRice and IRRI co-

organized an expert meeting on rice

mapping or Arica to review the applicability

o rice-mapping methods developed and validated

in Asia or Arican conditions.

One o the conclusions o the meeting was that

mapping methods used in Asia are not universally applicable

to Arica, which has more ragmented rice cultivation across

landscapes, smaller elds, heterogeneous growing seasons,

and rice environments not commonly ound in Asia. The

expert meeting proposed to test a number o promising

methods at selected sites in 2013 and 2014 and thus

combine the rice mapping knowledge accrued in Asia and

Europe with the knowledge o Arican conditions to develop

a methodology tailored to Arican rice environments.

The goal o the project is to develop and implement

a ramework to monitor rice production in the AricaRice

rice-sector development hubs using radar remote-sensing

methodology, said Dr. Sander Zwart, remote-sensing and

GIS specialist at AricaRice. Rice maps and statistics will

be essential to monitor and evaluate the impact o our

rice research and development activities with our national

partners.

Rice is the most rapidly growing ood source in Arica. But, although the continents rice production is expandingrapidly, not much inormation is available to boost Aricas rice productivity. To help fll this inormation gap, GRiSP

partners Arica Rice Center (AricaRice) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) are taking to the sky tosee whats really happening on the ground.

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NASA

A new eye on Arica: putting rice onthe map

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Number and type o GRiSP partners as o September 2010; the inner circle provides a breakdown by partner roles (research vs.boundary partners). The outer circle provides a classifcation by organizational categories. About 48% o the GRiSP partnersmainly play a role as research partners, whereas 47% are mainly development partners and 5% are other boundary partners.

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GRiSPsMissionGRiSPs mission is to reduce poverty and hunger, improve human health and nutri-

tion, reduce the environmental ootprint, and enhance the ecosystem resilience o rice

production systems through high-quality international rice research, partnership, andleadership.

Objectives

1: To increase rice productivity and value or the poor in the context o a changing

climate through accelerated demand-driven development o improved varieties and

other technologies along the value chain.

2: To oster more sustainable rice-based production systems that use natural resources

more eciently, are adapted to climate change and are ecologically resilient, and

have reduced environmental externalities.

3: To improve the eciency and equity o the rice sector through better and more ac-

cessib

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GRiSP in motion