PROMOTION
OF THE TEST AND DEMONSTRATION OF NEW PLANT TYPE
UNDER VARIOUS AGRO-ECOLOGIES IN WEST AFRICA
Rice
is the staple food of the population in Cape
Verde, Senegal, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Sierra
Leone, Liberia, and Gambia. It ranks second or
third position among the 5 top major foods
consumed by the population in Mauritania, Mali,
Cote d'Ivoire and Nigeria. Rice consumption has
also increased in other countries in West
Africa. Rice production in West Africa has not
been able to meet the demand of the growing
population.
The major rice
ecologies in West Africa include upland, rainfed
lowland (including inland vallet swamps),
irrigated and tidal wetland (or mangrove). At
present, upland rice is dominant in-terms of
harvested area, but the region has still large
potential for expansion of rainfed lowland rice
production. In 1998, most of the national rice
yields in the region are still lower than 2
tonnes/ha. This could be partly due to the low
levels of input applied by farmers.
Scientists
at the West Africa Rice Development Association
(WARDA) have recently developed a number of
promising rice varieties from crosses made
between O. sativa and O. glaberima
(New Plant Type). Also, a number of improved
production technologies have been developed for
different agro-ecologies of rice in West
Africa.
The
RDP has supported to the rice programmes in West
African countries, especially through the
Special Programme for Food Security (SPFS) in
Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana,
Guinea, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, and
Senegal. In 1997, RDP collaborated with WARDA to
compile the information on the promising rice
varieties for different ecologies in West
Africa, based on the multi-locational trials
which had been carried out by WARDA and NARS
during 1992-1996. Recently, WARDA has launched a
programme aimed at transferring the improved
rice varieties and production technologies to
farmers in West Africa.
The
RDP in 1998 started the programme on promotion
of the test and demonstration of New Plant Type
in collaboration with the FAO's SPFS and WARDA
aimed at rapid transfer of the new plant type to
farmers for increasing rice production. RDP and
WARDA fielded joint missions to visit the
activities of SPFS in Burkina Faso and Guinea in
June 1999. Recently, RDP support the technical
visits to WARDA of senior staff of the Rice
Programmes and the Coordinators of the SPFS in
these two countries to promote
collaboration.
The
analysis of the information on promising rice
varieties and crop management practices
collected during the earlier collaboration with
WARDA was recently completed. RDP is presently
in prepartion for the dissemination of the
information via both electronic means and
publication in hard copies.
In
late 1999, a Memorandum of Understanding was
signed by FAO and WARDA to strengthen the
collaboration in the promotion of test and
demonstration of New Plant Type and other
promising rice technologies.
