Showing posts with label Kenya. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kenya. Show all posts

Sunday, May 5, 2013

More Regional Issues of AgriCultures Network Magazines Focus on the System of Rice Intensification (SRI): China and Africa

There are now five regional and global editions of the AgriCultures Network's magazines that have their March issues focused on the System of Rice Intensification (SRI). The latest two of this group of publications that are dedicated to low external input sustainable agriculture are Baobab, an Africa-based magazine, and LEISA China, which is published in Chinese. (The March issues of the previous three, Farming Matters, LEISA India, and the Spanish language Latin American edition, LEISA Revista de Agroecología, have been reviewed in previous posts to our blog.)

水稻强化栽培体 (SRI) 的推广-  Download PDF

This March issue of LEISA China (vol. 7, no. 1) looks at the current use of and debates around System of Rice Intensification (SRI) as it moved from Madagascar to more than 50 countries and from rice to other crops. With the impressive dissemination of SRI, this is a fascinating case study of innovation from below, involving local authorities, "champions", extension agents and millions farmers


SRI: More Rice, Less Water -  Download PDF

Issue 66 of Baobab magazine captures the progressive adoption of the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) outside Madagascar, focusing on its introduction, adoption and effectiveness in East Africa. As the quest for technologies that enable more efficient and environmentally friendly agricultural practices has intensified, SRI, which was defined in Madagascar little more than a decade ago, has emerged as a good option.  Although efforts to introduce SRI  have met with some initial resistance of both farmers and the scientific community, the methods still spread from farmer to farmer at an amazing rate and the methods are now well-supported by research. Also covered in this issue is the application of SRI methods to a number of other crops.

Monday, February 20, 2012

KENYA: SRI Adoption and Yields on the Rise

Bancy Mati at SRI harvest According to Bancy Mati (at left), the driving force behind SRI promotion and research in Kenya and professor at Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT), the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) is now well-accepted just two and a half years after the practice was introduced into Mwea Irrigation Scheme. Approximately 3,000 farmers have been trained in SRI methods and adopters now number about 2,000 in the four irrigation schemes (Ahero, West Kano, Bunyala and Mwea). Mati estimates that thousands more have been reached through radio broadcasts (also in local languages), newspaper articles, exhibitions and open days sponsored by the JKUAT open days.

 This 2011-2012 season has shown good results with yields: Up to 9 t/ha for the lower-yielding Basmati variety compared to 5 t/ha with conventional management and over 17 t/ha for a high-yielding IR variety compared to 9 t/ha without SRI practices. Research findings also indicate water savings ranging from 25% in dry weather to 33% in wet weather. Several graduate theses have proven the benefits of SRI and additional research is underway by graduate students and staff of JKUAT, Mwea Irrigation Development Centre (MIAD), and recently Moi University. MSc research has also shown that show that SRI water management breaks the mosquito breeding cycle, showing good prospects for malaria control!

Kenyan farmers as well as other rice stakeholders are excited about SRI. A bag of SRI paddy reportedly weighs 10-20 kg more than that of conventional rice, mostly because of greater grain filling (fewer unfilled grains). When milled, the SRI rice has more whole grains (less breakage) so it sells faster, sometimes earning KSh2/kg (˜2.5¢/kg) more than conventional rice.

As part of the regular training to reach the unreached, an SRI field day was held  in Mwea on January 30, 2012. The training was conducted almost entirely by several of the 115 farmers who have completed the Training of Trainers (ToT) course. [Read more in the Kenya Feature on the SRI-Rice website.]

Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Paddy and Water Environment Journal Publishes Special Edition on SRI

The journal Paddy and Water Environment has devoted its March 2011 issue (Volume 9, Number 1) to the System of Rice Intensification. For those who are interested in learning more about the science behind SRI as well as how SRI is progressing in various areas of Asia, Africa and Latin America, the March issue of the journal is online through SpringerLink. Included are six articles and nine technical reports from Afghanistan, China, the Gambia, Kenya, India, Indonesia, Iraq, Mali,  Pakistan, Panama, and Thailand as well as several review articles.

To see journal articles from other sources published during 2011, visit the journal articles page on our SRI-Rice website.

Wednesday, June 30, 2010

SRI in the News - June 2010

SRI news for June comes from South and Southeast Asia, though it includes a visit by an African delegation from six countries to learn about SRI in India (see fourth article). News items below come from Indonesia, Laos, Vietnam and seven Indian states: Jharkhand, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, and, in the northeastern part of the country, Assam, Manipur and Nagaland.

Agriculture Department to introduce bio-fertilizer on large scale - June 29, 2010, E-PAO [source: the Sangai Express] (Manipur, India)

Sensitising farmers to developing techniques, methods under changing climatic conditions
June 29, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

Rice project helps farmers boost yields
June 28, 2010, Lao Voices (Laos)

Ceremonial harvesting of Rice cultivated by SRI at Nagaon
June 27, 2010, Assam times (Assam, India)

Kenyan team studies SRI project
June 26, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

A Philanthropy Advisor in Indonesia, Part 4: Rice Innovation in a Small Village
June 24, 2010, Asian Philanthropy Forum (Indonesia)

Plan to adopt SRI method on 36, 800 hectares
June 24, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

Orissa sets kharif target at 74.64 lakh tonne
June 23, 2010, Business Standard (Orissa, India)

Nabard aid for paddy
June 22, 2010, The Telegraph (Jharkhand, India)

Training prog on SRI in Tsg
June 22, 2010, Nagaland Post (Nagaland, India)

High risk of viral diseases once again affecting rice crops
June 19, 2010, Viet Nam News (Hanoi, Vietnam)

SRI seed farmers left in the lurch
June 19, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

Rice cultivation: Farmers encouraged to use SRI technique
June 18, 2010, Times of India (Uttar Pradesh, India)

Minister urges farmers to utilise technologies extensively
June 10, 2010, The Hindu (Tamil Nadu, India)

CAU to provide free paddy seedlings
June 5, 2010, E-PAO [source: The Sangai Express] (Manipur, India)

Attapeu: dry season rice plantation practiced on over 1,000 ha
June 2, 2010, Lao voices (Laos)