Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice)A CGIAR research center and

pan-African association of member countries

Importance of rice in SSAFastest growing food staple:Demand growing at > 6% per year – faster than any other food stapleStrategic for food security: Most important energy source in W Africa & Madagascar and 2nd most important in AfricaImpact on economies: Local production covers about 60% of demand (imports per year at >US$ 5 billion)Important for women: Main labor force in SSA’s rainfed ecologies (sowing to processing & marketing)Viable career for youth:The rice sector can employ many of the 17 million young people who enter SSA’s job market.Huge potential:Africa has resources to produce enough quality rice to feed itself and to export

Rice trends in SSAIndicator 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015

Production (million t)

8,357 10,497 11,655 12,829 12,195 12,489 13,158 14,464

Consumption (million t)

16,978 17,758 19,644 21,456 22,786 24,438 25,529 26,098

Imports (million t)

8,446 7,291 8,196 9,136 11,942 11,840 12,545 12,620

Average yield (t/ha of milled rice)

1.04 1.22 1.33 1.40 1.38 1.35 1.35 1.35

Self-sufficiency ratio in SSA (%)

0.50 0.59 0.59 0.59 0.51 0.52 0.51 0.55

Source: USDA data

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

10.0

12.0

14.0

2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Mill

ion

tons

Source: USDA

• Rice imports into Africa showed signs of stabilization at about 8 million tons before 2010

• But resurgence of high rice imports since 2011

Imports

• AfricaRice and partners have developed a strategic plan (2011-2020) to boost rice production in SSA

• This plan was approved by AfricaRice Council of Ministers in 2011.

• The Strategic Plan is being implemented with many partners across the research to development continuum.

• Vision: increase rice self-sufficiency ratio to almost 90% in 2020 leading to a reduction in imports of about 5 million t per year

AfricaRice 2011-2020 Strategic Plan

Brief history of AfricaRice• 1970: Created as West Africa Rice Development Association

(WARDA/ADRAO) by 11 African countries • 1987: HQ established in M’bé, near Bouaké, Côte d’Ivoire• 2004: HQ temporarily relocated to Cotonou, Benin, due to Ivorian crisis• 2009: Name changed to “Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice)” by Council of

Ministers• 2013: Total of 25 member countries across Africa• Mar 2015: Board decides to return HQ to Côte d’Ivoire in phases • Sep 2015: Management & support services begin operations from new

HQ building in Abidjan (offered by Ivorian Gov.)• July-Sep 2016: 1st wave of scientists to return to M’bé• 2017: 2nd and final wave of scientists to return to M’bé

Vision and priorities• Vision

– A pan-African center of excellence for rice research, development and capacity strengthening

• Priorities– Strengthening partnerships– Developing capacity of rice value chain actors, including youth and

women– Adopting innovation platform (IP) approaches in rice value chain– Improving access of rice producers to markets– Integrating rice science in the policy agenda of countries – Increasing investments in research for development of the rice

sector

Key role• Produces international public goods (knowledge,

technologies and policy advice) relating to rice for Africa• Provides technical support and advises member States on

critical rice production and marketing issues• Builds capacity through rice task forces• Concentrates R&D efforts in rice hubs set up across Africa • Mobilizes global knowledge through Global Rice Science

Partnership• Promotes uptake of research products through links with

development activities• Holds largest rice collection in Africa (more than 19,620

accessions)

Organogram

Locations

BENIN

NIGERIA

COTE D’IVOIRE

TANZANIA

SENEGAL

SENEGAL

MADAGASCAR

LIBERIA & SIERRA LEONE

Mechanisms adopted by AfricaRice

Global Rice Science PartnershipThematic task forces

Rice sector development hubs

Multi & Bilateral Donors

Policy makers

Govt/Public Extension

NGOs

Farmer associations

Task Forces Rice Sector Development Hubs

Dev. partners

Policy

Gender

Processing & Value Addition

Leve

ragi

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loba

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Consumers

Retailers

Wholesalers

Millers

Processors

Creditors

Farmers

Seed producers

Input suppliers

Mechanization

Agronomy

Breeding

Scalable innovations along the rice value chain

Achievement highlights: varieties> 200 improved rice varieties released in last 30 years in Africa:• High-performing and climate-smart ‘ARICA’ varieties

– ARICA 1 to ARICA 5: About 15-30% higher yield than NERICAs– ARICA 6 to ARICA 11: Stress-tolerant (iron toxicity, cold, salinity) high-yielding

• Popular ‘NERICA’ varieties• Area under upland NERICAs : 1.4 million ha in 2013. • NERICA adoption has lifted about 8 million people out of poverty in 16 countries

• High-yielding ‘Sahel’ varieties for irrigated ecologies• In Senegal, average yield increased by 872 kg per ha and incomes by $227 per

cropping season. Present value of net benefits of Sahel adoption $ 24.6 million• Hybrids

• More than 50 hybrids developed by AfricaRice show 15-20% yield advantage compared with inbred check. Two hybrids selected for release in Senegal in 2016. New set of hybrids being tested in several countries..

Some mega varieties

Variety name Ecology Yield (t/ha) Aroma ARICA 1 Lowland 6.0

ARICA 3 Lowland 7.8

ARICA 5 Upland 3.8NERICA 1 Upland 4.5NERICA 4 Upland 4.5NERICA 6 Upland 4.5NERICA L-19 Lowland 6.0

NERICA L-20 Lowland 6.0

ORYLUX 1 Irrigated 8.0 Aromatic

ORYLUX 3 Irrigated 6.3 Aromatic

ORYLUX 6 Irrigated 6.5 Aromatic

Good agricultural practices (GAP) basket development

Intervention Typical farmers’ practice and problems

GAP component Requirement for research?

Variety choice Old modern varieties New varieties YesLand preparation

Not bunded, not well leveled

Bunding & leveling No

Sowing Random transplanting & delayed sowing

Transplanting at optimum density, time

Yes

Weeding Single herbicide & two hand-weedings

Single herbicide & weeding with mechanical weeder

No

Fertilizer application

Very variable Site-specific nutrient management

Yes

Water management

Permanent standing water

Timing of drainage before harvesting

No

Crop management decision support tool:RiceAdvice

• Allows rice farmers to apply mineral fertilizer more efficiently to optimize production and profits and reduce waste

• Helps rice farmers identify the best option for fertilizers to be purchased, based on nutrient requirement and fertilizer prices

• Farmers can increase rice yield by about 20% and increase their profit margin by about $200 per hectare per season

Improved land & water managementSmart-valleys approach

• A low-cost, participatory and sustainable approach to develop inland valleys for rice-based systems

• Major advantages: increased water retention in farmers’ fields, less risk of fertilizer losses due to flooding and increased rice yields

• In Togo and Benin, average rice yields of farmers using Smart-valleys approach more than doubled from 1.5–2 to 3.5–4.5 t/ha

• Impact studies indicate the potential adoption rate is 67%

Mechanization

• Motorized weeders

• Threshers

• Combine harvesters

Improved rice processing - GEM rice parboiler• An improved rice parboiling system called GEM, combined with

training and innovation platform approach: improving the livelihood of more than a 1000 rural women in Benin

• It is energy-efficient, shortens processing time, reduces drudgery, and does not expose the women parboilers to heat burns

• With GEM, average monthly quantity of parboiled rice produced as well as the average monthly income from this activity more than doubled

Milling machine

Decision support: weed management

• Total rice production losses attributable to weeds in SSA estimated at US$ 1.5 billion

• Tool for identifying major rice weeds of Africa

• Valuable resource for professionals involved in research, training and management of rice weeds in SSA

From production focus to value chain focus

Pioneering work on experimental auctions and value chain development in Senegal

Packaging, branding and labeling of locally produced rice for urban and niche markets to enhance consumer attractiveness to locally produced rice in Glazou IP Parboiled rice “Riz Saveur” in Glazoue IP 

Private sector: partners for scaling up• Bringing together small-to-medium (SMEs) seed

enterprises and scientists

• Collaborating with private sector on certified rice seed production

• FASO KABA in Mali,

• NASECO Seed Company in partnership with NARO in Uganda;

• NAFASO in Burkina Faso

• ASI thresher manufacturing in partnership with private sector/SME blacksmiths in Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal

Youth entrepreneurship in rice value chain:conceptual framework

• Competence and skills for youths and women in agribusiness enhanced

• Significant return on investment when improved rice technologies, innovations and services are combined

• Coaching & mentoring youth and women to take lead role in modernizing the rice sector

Quality rice seedAWM

SMART-valleysWeeders

RiceAdvice ASI ThresherGEM rice Parboiler Packaging

Branding

AfricaRice reviving rice sector in West Africaunder World Bank facilitated WAAPP

Sierra Leone• Training of national research staff (seed production, data analysis, IP approach, breeding

techniques) - highly appreciated by WAAPP missions

• 5-year (2013-2017) rice research strategic plan for Rokupr research station established

• Rice value chain database developed; plan to upgrade the value chain developed

• Several scalable technologies. incl. improved varieties, ASI thresher, mechanical weeders and GEM parboiler

• Six upland NERICAs and ROK 34 (Pa Kiamp) released

• Post-Ebola crisis response: 22 t of upland NERICA 4 seed distributed and about 1000 t of lowland NERICA L19 seed rice to over 20,000 smallholder farmers

Discussions with World Bank representative in Liberia on the milled samples of rice

varieties

AfricaRice WAAPP-Liberia project coordinator showing to Liberian President the locally produced aromatic rice (she bought all

the rice that was exhibited!)

AfricaRice reviving rice sector in West Africa under World Bank facilitated WAAPP

Liberia• Aromatic rice produced, processed and

packaged in Liberia ready for market• National scientists and extension staff

trained in breeding, land & water management technologies, seed production and data management

• Scholarships awarded to post-graduate students on rice breeding

• Improved rice seed made available to farmers to jump-start agriculture after Ebola crisis

AfricaRice has a joint initiative with CORAF/WECARD to produce breeder seed of improved varieties and conduct multi-environment trials under the Africa-wide Rice Breeding Task Force.

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Supporting countries in rice breeder seed production

Thank you