Philippine university to deliver scholarship program with IRRI

An agreement was signed between Central Mindanao University (CMU) and IRRI on 19 July 2013 to deliver the Gawad Patnubay College Scholarship Program for deserving dependents of agrarian reform beneficiaries, cooperatives, and local government units where the Land Bank of the Philippines (Landbank) operates.

 Ma. Luisa Soliven, CMU president, signed the agreement with Corinta Guerta, IRRI director for external relations. 

Witnessing the signing were Revelieta Alovera, head of CMU’s Plant Pathology Department; Glenn Gregorio, IRRI senior scientist; Eugenio Castro, senior research manager at the IRRI Training Center (TC); and Anilyn Maningas, assistant manager at the TC. A meeting ensued between representatives from the CMU and the IRRI TC to further discuss guidelines for the implementation of the scholarship program.

Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Healthier rice on agenda of Philippines food officials' visit

IRRI's healthier rice research leader
Gerard Barry (left) and Oscar Gutierrez (right)
of the FDA.

Senior representatives of the Philippine Food and Drug Administration (FDA) visited IRRI Headquarters on 29 July 2013 for a briefing on the Institute’s research on healthier rice, including Golden Rice.


The FDA’s mission is to ensure the safety, efficacy, purity, and quality of products that it regulates through effective implementation of the national regulatory framework consistent with international best practices. The FDA has shown leadership in helping accurately communicate the status and safety of GM crops approved in the Philippines when it issued a safety advisory on 24 June 2013 titled, The Safety of Genetically-Modified Foods Produced Through Modern Biotechnology.

The briefing for the FDA at IRRI is part of an ongoing series of meetings with government and other stakeholders in the Philippines to inform them about the Institute’s work on healthier rice.

During the visit, V. Bruce J. Tolentino, IRRI’s deputy director general for communication and partnerships, provided an overview of IRRI’s research. Gerard Barry, leader of the Golden Rice project, talked in detail about IRRI’s research on developing healthier rice.

The group visited the Golden Rice screenhouse to view plants and grain samples, the gene transformation laboratory for a glimpse of IRRI’s GM rice research, and the International Rice Genebank to see IRRI’s rich collection of rice varieties conserved there.

The guests from the FDA were Kenneth Hartigan-Go, MD, director general; Cristal Ann Laquindanum, MD, head executive assistant, Office of the Director General; Maria Victoria Pinion, OIC, Product Research and Standard Development Division, CFRR; Flordeliza Abrahan, head, Food Laboratory Division, CFRR; Oscar Gutierrez, DVM, OIC, Policy and Planning Office; Abram Joseph Magnaye, DOH-DOST-PCHRD fellow (economics), PPO-FDA; and Rudolph Tan.

View more photos of the visit.

Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Philippine agriculture oversight team visits IRRI

Participants of the COCAFM briefing at IRRI

IRRI welcomed the members of the secretariat of the Philippines’ Congressional Oversight Committee on Agricultural and Fisheries Modernization (COCAFM), led by Executive Director Jocelyn Rodriguez-Badiola, on 18 July 2013 for a briefing on the Institute’s research, specifically on healthier rice.

COCAFM serves the agriculture and related committees, such as rural development and agricultural reform, of both the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines. Its mandate is to monitor the implementation of the Agricultural and Fisheries Modernization Act; oversee and monitor the implementation of the recommendations of the Congressional Commission on Agricultural Modernization as well as all programs and projects related to agriculture and fisheries; and provide legislative support.

Presentations on the following were given: IRRI and PhilRice's work to support the Philippines’ Food Staples Sufficiency Program, by V. Bruce J. Tolentino, IRRI’s deputy director general for communication and partnerships; PhilRice’s work, by Eufemio Rasco Jr., PhilRice executive director; and IRRI’s work on rice and a healthy diet by Inez Slamet-Loedin, IRRI scientist.

The COCAFM group also attended a seminar by Howarth Bouis on the work of HarvestPlus to increase the nutrition content of various crops, and had a chance to see Golden Rice grain samples.

Aside from mebers of the COCAFM Secretariat, other key officials attended included: Santiago Obien, representing Dante Delima, assistant secretary of the Department of Agriculture and director of the Rice Program; Ariel Gacayan, executive director of the National Agriculture and Fisheries Council; and Abraham Manalo of the Biotechnology Coalition of the Philippines. Jimmy Tadeo and Romeo Royandoyan, senior leaders of the farming and NGO sectors, respectively, also came with the group.

View more photos here.

Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Ecological engineering data consolidated for planthopper project

The ADB-IRRI Rice Planthopper Project held its final data synthesis workshop to consolidate data on arthropod biodiversity collected from experiment sites in the past two years.



Research partners came from China, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines (PhilRice), and IRRI and were taught to sort ecological engineering data. A series of lectures and hands-on exercises on summary statistics, inferential analyses, biodiversity statistics and analyses were also held.

The partners worked on their respective countries’ data sets as well as combined these data sets for cross-country comparisons.

The workshop was held on 29–31 July 2013 at IRRI.


Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Bangladesh: First 5-ton flatbed dryer installed

The 5-ton flatbed dryer is the first of its kind installed in Bangladesh.

Drying remains a key problem for farmers and other stakeholders in the rice postharvest chain in Bangladesh. To help overcome the problem, which is worst during the boro and aus (wet) harvest, a flatbed dryer was set up in the Jessore hub.



The establishment of the flatbed dryer was made possible through an agreement made in December 2012 between Ali Seed Farm and the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA) in Bangladesh, under its postharvest component.

A team started work at the premises of the Ali Seed Farm at Rupdia, Jessore, in March 2013 and completed installation and a test-run of new flatbed dryer on the last week of May. The team was composed of Debashish Chanda, senior specialist for postharvest and business model development, CSISA-BD; Alfred Schmidley, scientist, IRRI; and Lito Diestro, a dryer manufacturer from the Philippines

The new 5-ton flatbed dryer with a modified rice hull furnace is a good and affordable mechanical drying system that offers a practical solution for recovering more paddy and more value from farmers’ rice harvests.

Before the mechanical dryer was installed, the owner of the farm had to dry large volumes of seed on the drying floor and had to depend on sunlight. In just the last year, he lost about 400 tons of paddy seed because of rainy weather. He now says that, al though the cost of operation from the flatbed dryer is about the same as when he was drying seeds on the floor, he would be happy to pay even more for it.

Mechanical drying services will benefit farmers, processors, and trade intermediaries by recovering more of farmers’ harvests and by adding value to paddy. Flatbed dryers can also potentially be used to dry maize, soybean, and other crops.

Expansion of the current enterprise will not only expand contract drying services for a diverse customer base in the postharvest rice chain but will also allow the enterprise to access potential opportunities for drying other types of crop.

In a seminar held on 25 July 2013 at the IRRI Bangladesh Office, Dr. Chanda introduced this new business model, with emphasis on the fact that the 5-ton flatbed dryer is the first of its kind installed in Bangladesh and is running and benefiting the owner.


Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Women in rice farming to star at IRRI event

IRRI recognizes the crucial role of women in agriculture and food security, particularly in rice farming. In partnership with the Department of Agriculture (DA) and the Philippine Commission on Women (PCW), the Institute will be hosting Women in rice farming, an event that gives tribute to women and their contributions to rice production, on 8 August 2013 at IRRI Headquarters.

“Filipino women in rice farming are very proud of the fact that they are not only the family’s treasurers but are partners with their husbands in decision-making on farm and household matters,” said Thelma Paris, leader of IRRI’s gender research. “They are thus potential contributors and beneficiaries of rice technologies through rice research.” 

“Through this event, women in rice-farming communities can gain more knowledge and skills related to new technologies, which can help them make sound decisions to better manage their rice production,” added Dr. Paris. “In this event, we are also giving tribute and recognition to women leaders and ’unsung’ workers in the fields, especially in arduous operations such as transplanting, weeding, harvesting, gleaning, and other value-adding activities that are crucial in achieving household and national food (rice) security.”

Women in rice farming will be attended by women farmers and women from the national and local government units, the academe, and the private sector. Activities will include a field tour of IRRI’s facilities; viewing of various women-friendly machinery developed by IRRI’s Postharvest Center; marketplace presentations of IRRI’s research projects; and an open forum where guests, scientists, and researchers can discuss different aspects of food security. There will also be a tour of the Riceworld Museum and a viewing of the exhibit, Feathers in the Fields: The Birds of IRRI.

The event is a highlight of IRRI’s celebration of the National Year of Rice 2013.

Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Healthier rice takes center stage at international rice festival

V. Bruce J. Tolentino, IRRI’s communication and partnerships head, opened the International Rice Festival
with representatives from the National Nutrition Council, PhilRice, Oxfam, Megaworld Lifestyle Centers.The opening program included a rice wine-toasting ceremony and a cultural performance from the Indak Lahi dance troupe.

In keeping with Nutrition Month and the National Year of Rice (NYR) celebrations in the Philippines, IRRI

partnered with Megaworld Corporation to stage the International Rice Festival at Eastwood Mall, Quezon City, on 26–28 July 2013.

“Improving the nutrition and health of rice consumers and rice farmers is one of the main goals of IRRI,” said V. Bruce J. Tolentino, the Institute’s deputy director general for communication and partnerships, in his message during the Festival’s opening ceremony.

IRRI’s participation in the Festival was a fun opportunity to share its work with the public and to affirm its support to the rice self-sufficiency goal of the Philippine government, which is the focus of the NYR.

During the Rice Symposium on 28 July, Dr. Tolentino talked about IRRI and shared highlights of the Institute’s research and development programs. Lina Torrizo, associate scientist at IRRI’s Plant Breeding, Genetics, and Biotechnology division, discussed “hidden hunger,” or micronutrient deficiency that is prevalent in rice-consuming populations. She also spoke about IRRI’s work in developing healthier rice varieties as a potential new way to improve the nutrition of rice consumers.

Rosa Paula Cuevas, postdoctoral fellow at IRRI, got the audience talking about their rice preferences and dissected the various aspects of rice grain quality in a presentation.

The three-day event highlighted healthier ways to cook, serve, and enjoy rice through exhibits, bazaars, and cooking demos.

Other organizations that participated in the festival include the Philippine Rice Research Institute, Oxfam, Center for Culinary Arts, National Bookstore, Robinson’s Supermarket, Galileo Enotica, and more.

The IRRI booth featured taste-tests of brown rice to help consumers appreciate its appeal and learn more about its nutritional benefits over the commonly preferred white rice.

Mall-goers were likewise invited to sign up for a free subscription to e-Rice Today, IRRI’s quarterly publication. More than 200 signed up to receive e-Rice Today for free and more than 400 visited the brown rice-tasting booth.

Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Labor economist is guest in July researchers' lunch

Ashok Mishra, professor of agricultural economics at Louisiana State University, USA, joined the Young Researchers Lunch for July. Dr. Mishra has been visiting IRRI over the past few months doing research on the economics of women in agriculture, as presented in a recent IRRI Seminar.

Lunch attendees were Maria Luz Malabayabas, Donald Villanueva, Amelia Cueno, Rio Maligalig, Maria Theresa Castro, and Anandhan Tamilselvan.

The group discussed their perspectives on mechanization and labor with Dr. Mishra, who encouraged them to publish their research work and offered suggestions regarding doctoral programs in economics. His final words of advice for the group—"there is no substitute for hard work!"

The Young Researchers Lunch is a monthly meeting for NRS and AFSTRI scientists who are in the early stages of their career. The purpose is to provide an opportunity for discussion with senior scientists on a range of topics, including science and career paths.



Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Nutrition Month: IRRI takes part in End Hunger concert

To show support for the fight against hunger and malnutrition, several staff members from IRRI jammed with counterparts from the health and nutrition community during the End Hunger concert, organized by the National Nutrition Council (NNC) as part of Nutrition Month celebrations in the Philippines.

IRRI delegation to the End Hunger Concert with DOH Asec Maria Bernardita Flores and Asec. Eric Tayag

The theme for Nutrition Month this year is Gutom at malnutrisyon, sama-sama nating wakasan! (Together we can end hunger and malnutrition!).

The concert brought together Filipino artists and musicians all sharing messages of unity to increase awareness about issues and actions needed to mitigate hunger and malnutrition, encourage stakeholders to contribute to the cause, and advocate for stronger political action to end hunger.

Notable performances were given by Nikki Gil, Luis Manzano, Noel Cabangon, Princess, Bamboo, Assistant Secretary of Health Eric Tayag, and many others.

The concert was held on 19 July 2013 at the SM Mall of Asia Music Hall.

Improving the nutrition and health of rice consumers and rice farmers is at the heart of IRRI’s work on developing high-nutrient rice varieties. For its part, IRRI has initiated several activities that are aligned with the Philippine Nutrition Month and National Year of Rice celebrations. These activities include presentations in nutrition conferences, a media day, an in-house campaign for brown rice, and many more.




Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Zeigler honored for science leadership

Robert Zeigler, IRRI director general, was conferred the 2013 Leadership in Science Public Service Award by the American Society of Plant Biologists (ASPB).

The award recognizes individuals who have advanced the mission of ASPB and its members through significant contributions to plant science and public policy leadership.

Dr. Zeigler was honored for his focus on addressing the agricultural needs of the developing world through plant biology research. The ASPB cited his guidance of IRRI, “whose goals include increasing the nutrition and quality of rice through sustainable practices, toward breeding lines able to withstand a variety of environmental extremes, such as drought and flooding.”

He spoke as part of the awards symposium at Plant Biology 2013 in Providence on 20 July.

Dr. Zeigler was honored along with Lisa Ainsworth, Charles Albert Shull Awardee, and Ian Sussex, Stephen Hales Prize Awardee.



Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Iran: Rice technologists from West and Central Asia join rice production course

Sixteen rice technologists from Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkey underwent the two-week Rice Production Training Course held in Iran on 24 June–6 July 2013.

The training course was the first offered by the Regional Rice Research and Training Centre (RRRTC) and covered all aspects of rice production and processing. It was presented in English, Persian, and Russian but, as Joe Rickman of IRRI, one of the resource persons, said, “Language was not a major barrier as all lectures were supported by many practical exercises, and we had great translators.”

The course included visits to local rice-fish-duck farms, rice seedling farms, rice mills, and manufacturers of machinery. Participants were taught to use farm equipment, plow fields, establish and protect crops, mill, and test for grain quality.

Dr. Shahdi, IRRI representative in Iran, said that the students enjoyed the practical approach of the course and the new knowledge on equipment and technologies.

Resource persons for the course were Engr. Rickman and Eugene Castro from IRRI and ten subject matter specialists from Iran.

The training course was jointly conducted by the IRRI and the RRRTC for Central West Asia in Rasht, Iran.


Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Media Day promotes tasty and nutritious rice

Twenty-nine members of the media, representing more than 20 agencies, attended IRRI’s Media Day, or Kanin Get It, 16 July 2013, at IRRI Headquarters. The event focused on promoting IRRI’s research on high-nutrient rice and grain quality.

“Kanin” is the Filipino word for steamed rice and is also a contraction of the word for eating it.

V. Bruce J. Tolentino, deputy director general for communication and partnerships, welcomed the media correspondents present.

A rice-tasting activity ensued, facilitated by Rochie Cuevas of the Grain Quality and Nutrition Center at IRRI.

Maria Bernardita Flores, assistant secretary of health and executive director of the National Nutrition Council, in a message, cited the Philippine government’s policies and programs already in place to address hunger and malnutrition, including the Philippine Plan of Action for Nutrition 2011–16, the country’s framework for nutrition improvement and a guide for all who want to be involved in nutrition action. Dr. Flores also touched on rice as part of a healthy diet.

Presentations were also given by Inez Hortense Slamet-Loedin, IRRI senior scientist, on high-nutrient rice research at IRRI; and Sarah Beebout, on heavy metals and rice.

Participants were taken on a tour of IRRI facilities including the International Rice Genebank, the Golden Rice screenhouse, and the Postharvest Unit.

The IRRI Media Day is part of activities in celebration of the Philippine Nutrition Month that has the theme Gutom at malnutrisyon, sama-sama nating wakasan! (Together we can end hunger and malnutrition!).


Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Third season-long rice farming training program held for extension agronomists

Participants attend a briefing on training
and field activities with Philippine farmers.

The 18-week Season-long Rice Farming Training for Extension Agronomists opened at the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice) in Nueva Ecija, Philippines, on 17 June 2013.

The training program, now on its third year, has 21 participants from Cameroon, the Gambia, Liberia, Zambia, and the Philippines.

It seeks, through the participants, to contribute to a greater and sustainable harvest of quality rice in each country and will demonstrate that the application of up-to-date rice farming practices and farm mechanization will result in increased food security and improvement in the livelihoods of rice farmers, their families, and communities.

It includes a participatory technology demonstration (PTD) and a farmers field school (FFS), in partnership with Philippine farmers. As part of the program, IRRI, will hold follow-up meetings with participating organizations in Africa and with training participants with the intent to implement small projects by applying knowledge and skills acquired from the training in the participants’ respective countries.

The program will run until 18 October 2013, covering the 16-week rice production training at PhilRice and two-week mechanization training and planning workshop at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).

It is managed by IRRI and is being jointly implemented with the Government of Japan through the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).

The course is led by Noel Magor, program leader and Training Center head, with Joseph Rickman, IRRI senior scientist; Eugenio Castro, Jr., project coordinator and facilitator; Takahiro Nakamura, JICA; David Shires, consultant; and Zakaria Kanyeka, training coordinator in Africa.

IRRI urges staff to eat brown rice

Brown rice has more Vitamin B1 (thiamin), B2 (riboflavin), and B3 (niacin) than white (milled) rice, as 60–80% of these vitamins are removed during the milling process to attain white or polished white.

As part of Nutrition Month celebrations in the Philippines, IRRI is promoting the consumption of brown rice among its employees. IRRI’s larger brown rice campaign is part of its activities in keeping with the country’s National Year of Rice.

The  week-long promo started on 15 July 2013 and is being carried out in all three cafeterias at the IRRI Headquarters. Concessionaires are offering a free serving of brown rice during lunch time if an employee buys a vegetable dish.

The brown rice promo comes with a three-point pledge and commitment to the principles of Nutrition Month: to not waste food, to try eating brown rice, and to add fruits and vegetables to one’s meal.

IRRI staff  are also invited to join the Kanin Get It photo contest, open until 31 July 2013, in which they may share photos of one another eating nutritious food, especially brown rice. Interested parties can send photos as entries by email to bulletin@irri.org.

Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Tamil Nadu Agricultural University signs research agreement with IRRI

As part of the 2013–16 IRRI-India Work Plan, the Institute and the Tamil Nadu Agricultural University (TNAU) signed a memorandum of understanding on 28 June 2013 at TNAU to promote research, training, and exchange of information and technology on rice and its farming systems and value chains.

Under the MoU, scientists of TNAU and IRRI will exchange improved plant materials, publish and disseminate research findings, and develop technologies that will improve the productivity and sustainability of rice farming systems. This includes developing and disseminating resource conservation technologies such as improved crop establishment methods, tillage practices, and water and fertilizer management practices.

TNAU Vice Chancellor K. Ramasamy thanked IRRI for strengthening collaboration between the two institutions and offered working space for IRRI staff at TNAU. He also invited IRRI to establish a hub in any of the TNAU campuses.

TNAU's new research director is M. Maheswaran, who is an IRRI alumnus, and will be the key contact under the MoU together with J.K. Ladha, IRRI representative for India and Nepal.


Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

IRRI promotes eating brown rice among its staff

In support of the ongoing celebration of Nutrition Month  and the National Year of Rice in the Philippines, IRRI is promoting the consumption of brown rice as part of Nutrition Month ‘pledges’ that include:

• To not waste food, especially rice 
• To try brown rice, and 
• To add fruits and vegetables to the meal 

A week-long promo will be implemented in IRRI next week (15–19 July 2013) to encourage all staff members to buy a vegetable dish and get a free serving of brown rice from either the Filipino or the international food counters.

Brown rice, also known as unpolished rice, is now served as an option in all IRRI cafeterias every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday.

As part of the brown rice promo, IRRI has also launched the Kanin Get It photo contest, in which IRRI staff may share photos of one another eating nutritious food, especially brown rice. Photos can be posted as entries at the International Rice Research Institute Google+ page until 31 July 2013. Winners will be notified through email.

To read more about the health benefits of brown rice, listen to the latest podcast, Rice and Nutrition by Michael Joyce on IRRI Radio or read Nourishing a nation by Alaric Francis Santiaguel  from the latest issue of Rice Today.


Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Online rice statistics tool updated

The Social Sciences Division (SSD) has recently updated World Rice Statistics (WRS), an online query facility, which may be accessed hereon at http://ricestat.irri.org:8080/wrs2.


WRS is a compilation of national and subnational data on rice production and yield, import and export prices, supply and demand, and others. Data may be viewed according to user-set parameters and downloaded as an Excel or CSV file.

The SSD Research Data and Management team that collects and maintains WRS welcomes comments and feedback to further improve the online facility. WRS is continuously updated and includes the latest data from SSD's resources, including its own collection.

Please send questions and suggestions to Josephine Narciso (j.narciso@irri.org).



Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

IRRI joins the Philippines in celebrating Nutrition Month

IRRI joins the 39th celebration of the National Nutrition Month in the Philippines, with the theme “Gutom at malnutrisyon, sama-sama nating wakasan! (Together we can end poverty and malnutrition!)”

Nutrition Month was launched in Manila today, 2 July 2013, an event that brings focus on the country’s need for active stakeholder participation in addressing the basic causes of hunger. The annual campaign, held for the month of July every year, aims to create greater awareness about nutrition among Filipinos and is coordinated by the National Nutrition Council and the Food and Nutrition Research Institute.

To support this campaign, IRRI activities have been lined up that include an IRRI media day titled Kanin Get It  to be held on 16 July 2013; Nutri űp! Health Options and Choices on 25-26 July, organized by the Human Resources Services; and a feeding program, called “nutrition rehabilitation,” among marginalized families particularly women and children in Los Baños and Bay. This third activity will be coordinated by the the Provincial Nutrition Action Council of Laguna, the Host Country and Community Relations Office, and SUHAY, a charity group composed of IRRI spouses.

IRRI with its concessionaires will promote brown rice by serving it as an option at the IRRI cafeteria for the month of July 2013. Special promos on brown rice and a variety of other healthy dishes will also be offered in the cafeteria on certain weeks.

Currently, about one sack, or 50 kilograms, of polished (white) rice is consumed at the IRRI cafeteria in Harrar Hall in a day.


Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Training course on phenotyping for abiotic stresses held for Asia and Africa scientists

IRRI's second regional training course on Phenotyping for abiotic stresses, GxE testing, seed storage, and farmer participation is ongoing at its Training Center, with 28 young rice scientists from Asia and Africa attending.

At the opening session, Bruce Tolentino, IRRI's deputy director general for communications and partnerships, underscored the significance of the course as a “merging” of IRRI’s mission and national food security goals. 

Soledad Castañeda, chief of the Atomic Research Division of the Philippine Nuclear Research Institute (PNRI), also welcomed the participants.

The course offers participants the latest in phenotyping approaches for stresses such as salinity, drought, submergence, and other soil problems; proper seed multiplication and management, and participatory approaches. It is composed of a series of lectures and hands-on exercises delivered and facilitated by resource persons from IRRI, the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO,) and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). 

Sponsors of the training course are IAEA; the Agricultural Research Development Agency (ARDA); the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Thailand; the Department of Agriculture and Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, Bhutan; the Stress-Tolerant Rice for Africa and South Asia (STRASA) Project; the European Commission (EC); the International Fund for Agriculture Development (IFAD); and IRRI. 

The two-week course runs from 1-12 July 2013 under the supervision of course director Abdelbagi Ismail. It is jointly facilitated by the IRRI Training Center and PNRI.


Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).

Nepal celebrates National Rice Day

Nepal celebrated its 10th National Rice Day on 29 June 2013, with more than 10,000 government and agriculture leaders, researchers, extension workers, and farmers joining the festivities held at farmers’ fields in Bhaktapur District and at the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) Research Centre in Khumaltar.

Tek Thapa and Jaya Mukunda Khanal, the minister of agriculture development (MoAD) and MoAD secretary, respectively, emphasized adoption of rice technologies to increase production and productivity for food security in their messages.

Several rice production technologies were highlighted by Dil Gurung, NARC executive director, who also cited the Nepali government's support to rice research through supply of genetic materials; technological development; capacity building of rice scientists; and Nepal's participation in various partner networks based at IRRI that include the Consortium for Unfavorable Environments (CURE), Council for Partnership on Rice Research in Asia, Hybrid Rice Development Consortium (HRDC), and the Temperate Rice Research Consortium (TRRC).

The IRRI Nepal Office was represented by Bhaba Tripathi in the ceremonies.

From 2004, when Nepal joined the United Nation's call to celebrate the International Year of Rice, the government decided to celebrate National Rice Day on 29 June every year.

National Rice Day aims to make people aware of the importance of rice to the national economy as well as in daily life.

The IRRI Nepal Office was represented by Bhaba Tripathi in the ceremonies.


Learn more about IRRI (www.irri.org) or follow us on the social media and networks (all links down the right column).