The FAO Regional Expert Consultation
on Bridging the Rice Yield Gap in the Asia and Pacific Region

As follow-up to a recommendation made at the 19th Session of the International Rice Commission, which took place in Cairo from 7 to 9 September 1998, the Regional Office for Asia and the Pacific (RAP) organized an Expert Consultation on Bridging the Rice Yield Gap to review and make recommendations on closing the rice yield gap in the region. The expert consultation was held in Bangkok from 5 to 7 October 1999 and was attended by experts from Australia, Bangladesh, China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Viet Nam, together with representatives of FAO

and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). This article outlines its conclusions and recommendations.

The expert consultation recognized that rice is the staple food of most people in Asia and, hence, that security in rice production creates food security. Rice is closely linked to the social harmony and political stability of many countries. However, recent trends of declining productivity and profitability for farmers are discouraging many of them from pursuing rice farming. It is therefore recommended that governments should take appropriate action to improve rice farmers' productivity and income, while ensuring national food security.

Among the various strategies for achieving the minimum production growth required to raise and sustain the level of sufficiency in rice, consolidation of existing genetic yields is widely recognized as the most practical for the short term. It requires precise assessment of the yield gap, identification of key technological, institutional, socio-economic and policy-level constraints, and determination of appropriate remedies.

YIELD GAPS IN RICE ECOSYSTEMS

The expert consultation recognized the existence of sizeable yield gaps between attainable and farm-level yields across ecologies, regions within ecologies and crop seasons in all rice growing countries in Asia and the Pacific. The practical yield gap that can be addressed is the difference between the optimum attainable yield and the farm-level yield when:

• the optimum attainable yield is the rice yield of experimental/on-farm plots with no physical, biological or economic constraints and with the best available management practices for a specific time and ecology;
• the farm-level yield is the average yield that farmers achieve in the area at a specific time and ecology.

The consultation observed that the yield gap between attainable and economically exploitable yields ranges from 10 to 60 percent depending on the ecosystem and country. More adverse environments (rainfed and flood-prone) have higher yield gaps.

The consultation discussed the various factors currently contributing to the yield gap in different countries. These include biophysical, technical/managerial, socio-economic, institutional/policy, technology transfer and adoption/linkage problems.

It was also recognized that only part of the yield gap can be remedied by the technologies that are currently available. Policy environment and interventions were considered a very vital component of the strategy for bridging the yield gap, as were technology transfer to farmers and research-extension-farmer linkages.

The consultation recognized that developing new varieties with higher yield potential and stability is complementary to bridging the yield gap.

The expert consultation felt that the goodwill and cooperation of governments is essential when an effective yield gap-narrowing regional programme is being initiated.

FACTORS CONTRIBUTING TO THE YIELD GAP

The consultation identified the following constraints as key contributors to the yield gap:

• Biophysical: weather, soil, water, pest pressure, weeds.
• Technical/management: tillage, variety/seed selection, water, nutrients, weeds, pests and post-harvest management.
• Socio-economic: social/economic status, farmers' traditions and knowledge, family size, household income, expenses and investment.
• Institutional/policy: government policy, rice price, credit, input supply, land tenure, market, research, development and extension (RD&E).
• Technology transfer and linkages: competence and resources of extension staff, RD&E integration, farmers' cognitive blocks, knowledge and skills, linkage among public, private and non-governmental organization (NGO) extension staff.

The specific constraints affecting rice productivity in the different ecosystems of selected Asian countries were identified.

Irrigated rice ecosystem

Here the priority concerns are:

• declining soil productivity and inappropriate/imbalanced nutrient use, which increase the severity of pest and disease pressure;
• poor water management, resulting in low water use efficiency (WUE) and soil salinity/alkalinity problems;
• problems arising from varietal appropriateness, availability and adoption;
• planting time and plant density problems;
• inadequate availability and quality of inputs (seed, fertilizer, pesticide);
• post-harvest losses;
• declining profits;
• inadequate research and extension support to farmers.

Rainfed lowland ecosystem

The priority concerns are:

• low soil fertility and fertilizer use;
• problem soils (salinity, acidity, alkalinity, iron toxicity);
• drought and flood problems;
• inadequate research (lack of location-specific varieties and production technologies);
• poor weed management;
• inadequate availability and quality of inputs (seed, fertilizer, pesticide);
• post-harvest losses;
• low profits;
• inadequate/ineffective extension support to farmers and slow adoption of recommended technologies;
• poor rural infrastructure.

Upland rice

The priority concerns are:

• drought;
• very low soil fertility and fertilizer use;
• weed infestation;
• lack of location-specific varieties (blast-resistant and drought-tolerant) and production technologies;
• inadequate research and extension support service;
• low profits.

The expert consultation recommended the continuing development of a uniform system to assess the precise levels of yield gaps and apportion the relative contributions to yield gaps and productivity growth made by the various factors involved.

MECHANISMS TO REDUCE YIELD GAPS

The different countries presented shared and individual activities, programmes and strategies for reducing the yield gap. The expert consultation recognized that the narrowing of the yield gap of rice requires the concerted efforts of all parties concerned, both national and international (governments, NGOs, private organizations, international agricultural research centres, UN agencies). Sensitization of policy- and decision-makers is an important activity in bridging the yield gap.

The consultation agreed on the deployment of a holistic and participatory approach to address yield gap problems. The following are key points in such a strategy:

• development of location-specific varieties and technologies, i.e. integrated crop management approaches such as the Ricecheck system used in Australia (a tropical ricecheck for targeted areas);
• incorporation of yield-stabilizing traits through conventional and innovative approaches (resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses);
• development and adoption of technologies with higher yield potential, such as hybrid rice and new plant types;
• intensified technology transfer activities using successful models, such as contiguous area demonstrations to promote yield enhancing technologies, i.e. land preparation, improved variety and seed, pest management, nutrient management/balanced use of fertilizers, water management and post-harvest management;
• improvement of the working relationships and interactions among research, development and extension services;
• policy intervention to provide incentives for high production, i.e. pricing, credit, input supplies and marketing.

REGIONAL PROJECT TO BRIDGE THE YIELD GAP

The consultation agreed to the development of a regional project that will focus on priority technical and management constraints and the improvement of technology transfer and linkages. The institutional and policy interventions required to facilitate implementation of the regional project will be forwarded to the respective governments for consideration and action.

La consultation régionale d'experts de la FAO sur la réduction des
écarts de rendements dans la région Asie et Pacifique

Des experts provenant d'Australie, du Bangladesh, de Chine, d'Inde, d'Indonésie, des Philippines, du Sri Lanka, de Thaïlande et du Viet Nam, ainsi que la FAO et l'Institut international de recherche sur le riz (IRRI), ont participé à la Consultation d'experts sur la réduction des écarts de rendements du riz, qui s'est tenue à Bangkok (Thaïlande) du 5 au 7 octobre 1999. La Consultation a recommandé aux autorités de prendre les mesures qui s'imposent pour améliorer la productivité des riziculteurs et leurs revenus tout en assurant une sécurité alimentaire au pays. Elle a admis l'existence d'un écart de rendement, qui varie de 10 à 60 pour cent, dans les pays producteurs de riz de la région Asie et Pacifique. L'écart de rendement concret qui peut être économiquement examiné concerne la différence entre le rendement maximum qu'il est possible d'obtenir et le niveau atteint au niveau de l'exploitation. La Consultation a reconnu qu'une partie seulement de cet écart peut être comblé grâce aux technologies actuellement disponibles, et qu'il est donc nécessaire de développer de nouvelles variétés dont les rendements sont potentiellement plus élevés et stables si l'on veut réduire l'écart de rendement. Le cadre et les mesures politiques sont également fondamentaux. De même, les transferts de technologies destinées aux agriculteurs et les liens établis entre la recherche, la vulgarisation et les agriculteurs jouent aussi un rôle important. Il est donc nécessaire, pour résumer, que toutes les parties concernées s'entendent pour fournir ensemble les efforts en vue de réduire l'écart de rendements. La Consultation d'experts a recommandé l'élaboration d'un système uniforme sur une base stable pour évaluer, avec précision, le niveau des écarts de rendements, et affecter en conséquence divers facteurs à la réduction des écarts de rendements et à l'accroissement de la productivité. La Consultation a accepté d'élaborer un projet régional qui s'intéressera surtout aux limitations prioritaires du point de vue de la technique et de la gestion, et à l'amélioration des transferts de technologies et aux liaisons. Aux niveaux institutionnel et politique, les mesures nécessaires pour compléter la mise en _uvre réelle du projet régional seront adressées aux autorités pour qu'elles en prennent connaissance et adoptent une ligne d'action.

Consulta regional de expertos de la FAO sobre la forma de colmar el déficit de
rendimiento de arroz en la región de Asia y el Pacífico

Expertos de Australia, Bangladesh, China, Filipinas, India, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Tailandia, Viet Nam, FAO y del Instituto Internacional de Investigación sobre el Arroz (IRRI) participaron en la Consulta de Expertos sobre la forma de colmar el déficit de rendimiento del arroz, que tuvo lugar en Bangkok, Tailandia, del 5 al 7 de octubre de 1999. La Consulta recomendó a los gobiernos que adoptaran las medidas pertinentes para mejorar la productividad de los cosecheros y sus ingresos, al propio tiempo que se garantizaba la seguridad alimentaria nacional. Reconoció la existencia de un déficit de rendimiento, que alcanza del 10 al 60 por ciento en los países arroceros de la región de Asia y el Pacífico. El déficit de rendimiento práctico que puede salvarse económicamente es la diferencia entre el rendimiento obtenible óptimo y el rendimiento a nivel de arrozal. La Consulta reconoció que sólo una parte de ese déficit puede colmarse con las tecnologías actualmente disponibles y que para ello es necesario desarrollar nuevas variedades con mayor potencial de rendimiento y estabilidad. El entorno y las intervenciones de orden político se consideraban un elemento importantísimo de la estrategia para colmar dicho déficit. La transferencia de tecnología a los agricultores y la ligazón entre investigación y extensión y agricultor juegan un papel notable. Hacen falta esfuerzos aunados de todas las partes interesadas para disminuir esas disparidades. La Consulta recomendó el desarrollo de un sistema uniforme de carácter permanente para definir los niveles de déficit del rendimiento y distribuir la contribución respectiva de los distintos factores a las disparidades de rendimiento y al crecimiento de la productividad. La Consulta acordó desarrollar un proyecto regional que se centre en las limitaciones prioritarias de carácter técnico y de gestión y en la mejora de las transferencias de tecnología y de las conexiones. Se trasladarán a los respectivos gobiernos para que las examinen y adopten medidas favorables a las distintas intervenciones de orden institucional y normativas necesarias para complementar la aplicación eficaz del proyecto regional.