IRRI HOTLINE An information summary for supporters of international rice research Published by the INTERNATIONAL RICE RESEARCH INSTITUTE Vol. 111 Nº. 2 June 2002 The first-ever congress for the food that feeds almost half the world An unprecedented gathering of international leaders in science, business and government will take place in China in September. The meeting will focus on sustainable ways to keep some of the world's most populous countries well fed and stable. The International Rice Congress will be held in Beijing at the China International Hi-Tech Convention and Exhibition Center on September 16-20. At the top of the agenda for the first-ever meeting of the international rice industry will be the effort to help farmers both improve their incomes and protect the environment through sustainable use of natural resources, while continuing to ensure reliable supplies of the food that feeds almost half the planet every day. "Equally important as the food security issue at the congress will be renewed efforts to improve the livelihoods of the world's hundreds of millions of poor rice farmers," said Song Jian, vice chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Council and honorary chairman of the International Rice Congress Organizing Committee. "For too long, many rice farmers have been trapped in poverty and deprived of technologies that most farmers who grow other crops take for granted." The congress is co-organized by IRRI, the State Development Planning Commission of the People's Republic of China, the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences. Under the theme Innovation, Impact and Livelihoods, it aims to bring together for the first time all aspects of rice production-one of the world's oldest and most fundamental economic activities-with a focus on four main areas: research, trade and economics, technology and impact, and culture. Rice researchers win major environmental prize An innovative campaign that promises to help protect a million rice farmers in the Red River Delta of Vietnam from the harmful effects of dangerous insecticides has won one of the world's major environmental prizes. The campaign-which will be jointly advanced by a team of Philippine and Vietnamese scientists-will build on a groundbreaking effort that has sharply reduced pesticide misuse in Vietnam's Mekong Delta. The collaborative effort, led by K.L. Heong, a senior entomologist at IRRI, M.M. Escalada, a communications professor at the Philippine's Leyte State University, and Nguyen Huu Huan, the vice director general of Vietnam's Plant Protection Department, received the $25,000 Saint Andrews' Environmental Prize earlier this month at a ceremony in Scotland. First launched in 1994 in the Mekong Delta, the research and subsequent campaign marked a milestone in rice production for two reasons. Firstly, it clearly identified the damage caused by the overuse of insecticides, which kills off friendly insects and so encourages the pests they would otherwise help control, and it also developed a completely new way of communicating important information to farmers. After testing their campaign in the Mekong Delta, where almost 2 million rice growers were persuaded to cut back on using harmful and unnecessary farm chemicals, the research partners launched, on World Environment Day last June, a similar, on-going campaign in northern Thailand's Sing Buri Province. Now they will use the Saint Andrews' prize money to extend the campaign to another million rice farmers in the Red River Delta. Peace and food security in Central and South Asia A cropping system that unites millions of farmers across South Asia promises to play a key role in helping to achieve peace and stability in Afghanistan. Rice and wheat are traditionally planted in rotation in eastern Afghanistan, as they are on much of the Indo-Gangetic Plain, which extends east of Afghanistan through Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bangladesh. Restoring a productive rice-wheat system in Afghanistan is essential to reviving Afghan agriculture, ensuring food security, and setting the war-torn country on the road to economic recovery. "We must focus our attention on re-establishing food security as quickly as possible," said a senior aid official. "Restoring Afghanistan's agricultural sector has multiple benefits. Historically, 80 percent of the population depends on farming and grazing. Revitalizing this sector not only will reduce dependency on international food assistance, but give employment to former combatants, help stabilize the security environment, and spur the economy." Imported rice accounts for some 30 percent of Afghan consumption of the grain, a figure roughly parallel to the one-third of the Afghan people who depend on international food aid. The rice-wheat system is the focus of an on-going, ten-year scientific effort to ensure the continued productivity of the 13.5 million hectares of the Indo-Gangetic Plain where the system is practiced, as well as a further 10.5 million hectares in China. "It's crucial that the rice-wheat farmers of South Asia continue to be able to harvest their crops and so feed the hundreds of millions of people who depend on them," warned IRRI Director General Ronald P. Cantrell. "And, today, it's a pressing need that the rice-wheat farmers of Afghanistan receive assistance in restoring the productivity of their farms." In a global effort to assist rice-wheat farmers in South Asia, the national agricultural research and extension systems of Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bangladesh have joined forces with scientists from IRRI and other Future Harvest centers - including the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center in Mexico, the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics in India, the International Water Management Institute in Sri Lanka, and the International Center for Potatoes in Peru - to form the Rice-Wheat Consortium. The Asian Development Bank funds the consortium. 4th hybrid rice symposium held in Vietnam One of the most valuable developments in the modern history of rice production was the focus of the 4th International Symposium on Hybrid Rice held on 14-17 May in Hanoi, Vietnam. With the theme Hybrid vigor in rice for food security, poverty alleviation, and environmental protection, the participants, including representatives from public, private and NGO seed companies, discussed the current status and future prospects of developing and disseminating hybrid rice technology. The symposium also included a special session on public and private sector partnership for hybrid rice commercialization. More than 200 hybrid rice scientists, policy makers, seed producers and extension workers attended the meeting. Nguyen Cong Tan, Vietnam's vice prime minister, opened the symposium on 14 May. L.H. Ngo, the Vietnamese minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, was among representatives from the 20 countries active in developing and disseminating hybrid rice technology. Also present were a number of international agencies supporting the development of hybrid rice, including IRRI, the Asian Development Bank, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, and the Asia Pacific Seed Association. Korea and IRRI set collaborative workplan for 2002-2003 A meeting on 25-27 April at the Rural Development Administration (RDA) in Suwon, Republic of Korea, reviewed results to date of Korea-IRRI collaboration and the workplan for 2002-2003. Drs. Ren Wang, D.J. Mackill, M. Bell, C.G. McLaren, K.K. Jena and H.Y. Kim (RDA-seconded staff to IRRI) represented IRRI, and 30 scientists from RDA participated. Under the new workplan, the partners will add four new projects to 10 on-going collaborations. Much of the work focuses on improving varieties, hybrid rice, biotechnology and developing data-management systems for rice breeding. Germplasm exchange and special projects to develop super-yielding japonica rice cultivars suitable for direct seeding in temperate environments will continue. The program on scientist exchange and training to support the collaboration was extended. New initiatives will include molecular breeding of japonica rice for biotic and abiotic stress resistance and a joint training program on Rice Technology Transfer Systems in Asia, to be held 29 September-12 October at RDA. IRRI and Korean Rural Development Administration ink letter of agreement <http://10.2.0.16/irribulletin/Bulletin%2018%20images/RDA.jpg> IRRI and Korea will collaborate in developing and delivering a two-week Training Workshop on Rice Technology Transfer Systems in Asia. Je-Bin Song, director general of the Planning and Management Office of the Rural Development Administration of the Republic of Korea, and IRRI Director General Ronald P. Cantrell signed a letter of agreement on 10 May at IRRI. The training workshop aims to identify the components of successful research-extension linkage as exemplified by the Korean system, analyze technology transfer systems throughout Asia, and initiate regional cooperation and networking among countries and institutions for technology delivery. Selected senior and high-ranking government and NGO officials involved in policy advocacy, research and extension in Asia will attend the course, which will be held from 29 September to 12 October at the International Technical Cooperation Center in Suweon, Korea. Mark Bell is the main contact person for the training workshop. Strengthening rice research and extension linkages in Bangladesh On 20-21 April, policymakers, rice researchers, extension officials and NGO representatives gathered in Dhaka for a dialogue on strengthening linkages between rice research and extension. Mirza Fakhrul Islam Alamgir, state minister for agriculture for Bangladesh; M. Nurul Alam, executive chairman of the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council; Mahabub Hossain, head of IRRI's Social Sciences Division; and Noel Magor, manager of the project Poverty Elimination Through Rice Research Assistance, inaugurated the workshop. IRRI, the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute, and the Department of Agricultural Extension co-organized the event. The dialogue aimed to assess the demand for rice research and the gap between supply and demand of improved rice technologies, examine the existing strengths and weaknesses in linkages between research and extension, and explore means of achieving closer collaboration between the public and private sector for fast-tracking technology dissemination. IRRI scientists visit Mozambique for collaboration opportunities To explore opportunities for collaboration between IRRI and Mozambique in the context of the current Portugal-IRRI Project on nutrition biotechnology and in other areas of rice research, David Mackill, head of IRRI's Plant Breeding, Genetics and Biochemistry Division, and IRRI plant biotechnologist Swapan Datta visited Mozambique on 9-15 March. Hosted by the Instituto Nacional de Investigacao Agronomica (INIA), the visit was part of a project on improving the nutritional value of the rice grain through biotechnology supported by the government of Portugal, through the Institute of International Scientific and Technological Cooperation (ICCTI). Drs. Mackill and Datta went to five research stations-Chokwe (Gaza), Umbeluzi (Maputo), Quelimane (Zambezia), Beira (Sofala), and Nampula (Nampula)-where irrigated rice, rainfed lowland rice, and upland rice were planted. To further assess the problems and needs of rice grown in Mozambique, and to identify the areas where IRRI could be of help, they also attended several meetings with heads and officials of research stations and seed and irrigation companies. The two IRRI representatives met with Patrick Matakala, International Centre for Research in Agroforestry liaison scientist based at INIA. In a wrap-up discussion on the short-term plans for the IRRI-Mozambique collaboration, Drs. Mackill and Datta and Manuel Amane, head of the INIA Crops and Farming Systems Department, agreed that IRRI would send breeding lines for evaluation next season and promote IRRI training courses and workshops to encourage participants from Mozambique. New IRRI program leaders> Roland J. Buresh, soil scientist in the Crop, Soil and Water Sciences (CSWS) Division at IRRI, is the new leader of Program 2, Enhancing Productivity and Sustainability of Favorable Environments, following the departure of Jim Hill on 30 April. Dr. Buresh will also assume the role of project team leader for Project 6, coordinating the Irrigated Rice Research Consortium. Suan Pheng Kam, geographic information systems specialist in the Social Sciences Division, replaced Dr. Buresh as acting project team leader of Project 8, Natural Resource Management for Rainfed Lowland and Upland Rice Ecosystems. IRRI scientists win PCMP best paper and poster awards IRRI scientists won four awards during the 33rd Annual Scientific Conference of the Pest Management Council of the Philippines, held on 8-10 May in Davao City. Josie Lynn A. Catindig and K.L. Heong won the Best Poster award of the Philippine Association of Entomologists for their entry Rice IPM CD-a framework for pest management information delivery. The Best Poster award of the Philippine Phytopathological Society, Inc. (PPSI), went to Jo Manalo, M.V. Reveche, L.M. Borines, I.P. Oña, C.M. Millena, S. Begum, E.R Angeles, K. Webb, J.E. Leach, and C.M. Vera Cruz for their entry Development of Xa-gene pyramid rice lines with durable resistance to bacterial blight. The paper Bacterial blight resistance gene pyramids in maintainer lines of rice (Oryza sativa L) hybrids, by L.M. Borines, E.D. Redoña, B. Porter, F. White, M.P. Natural, C.M. Vera Cruz and H. Leung, won the PPSI Best Paper category. The Best Paper Award in Weed Science went to Carmelo O. Garcia and James E. Hill for their entry Growth and survival of rice and Echinochloa species as affected by early deep flooding. In addition, Entomology and Plant Pathology Division Plant Pathologist Casiana M. Vera Cruz received the Philippine Phytopathogical Society Inc. GO Ocfemia Award in Plant Pathology for her research accomplishments in the field of molecular plant pathology. IRRI participates in Indonesia's national rice week In response to the challenge facing Indonesia to increase rice production, the Indonesian Agency for Agricultural Research and Development (AARD), through its sister institute, the Research Institute for Rice, held a National Rice Week in Sukamandi, West Java, on 4-7 March. The event aimed to show current rice technologies, raise awareness of the progress made in rice research and development, and to provide favorable policy for the adoption of the technologies at the farm level. It also aimed to encourage feedback from farmers and attract other institutes and private-sector groups to collaborate in rice research and development. President Megawati Sukarnoputri formally opened the event after taking a field tour with other top officials. During her speech, the president thanked IRRI for its contributions to Indonesia's rice research and development program. On behalf of Bungaran Saragih, Indonesia's minister of agriculture, President Megawati presented retired IRRI rice breeder Gurdev Khush with a special recognition for his dedication and contributions to hybrid rice. Drought, nutrient/pest management planning, and water workshops at IRRI An important workshop, Progress Toward Developing Resilient Crops for Drought-Prone Areas, took place at IRRI on 27-30 May. Crop tolerance to drought is a theme that has captured the attention of scientists for decades. Our understanding of genetic variation in drought tolerance is changing rapidly, as new scientific approaches are applied to this formerly intractable problem. In particular, the integration of specially designed genetic resources, tools for genome mapping, and science-based drought-screening protocols has allowed researchers to identify genetic regions associated with variation in drought tolerance. Co-sponsored by IRRI and the Rockefeller Foundation, the workshop aimed to facilitate information exchange between different groups and to explore opportunities to apply emerging information for crop production in drought-prone areas. Separately, a planning workshop on integrated nutrient and pest management in intensive irrigated rice ecosystems was held at IRRI on 20-22 May. The workshop identified research needs in farmers' nutrient and pest management for rice, developed a work plan for implementing improved integrated nutrient and pest management options, and planned farmer participatory evaluation and adaptation of improved integrated nutrient- and pest-management options. Another workshop, on Water-Wise Rice Production, was held on 8-11 April at IRRI. Jointly organized with the Wageningen University and Research Center-Plant Research International (WUR-PRI), the workshop dealt with problems caused by water shortages in rice production. Training on delivery of new technologies in Bangladesh A training course on Strengthening farmers' participatory research and diffusion of technological knowledge was held at the Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI), Gazipur, Bangladesh, on 17-18 April. About 70 experts and scientists from national and international institutes and block supervisors of the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) attended. Jointly organized by BRRI, DAE and IRRI, the training course was inaugurated by BRRI Director General S.B. Siddique. Various experts and scientists discussed rice-based technologies such as wet-bed sowing, cold tolerance, short duration, saline tolerance, and the leaf color chart for optimum nitrogen-fertilizer management. IRRI participates in nutrition and biotechnology symposium About 300 nutritionists, biologists, and others from academic institutions and the food industry attended the Symposium on Nutrition and Biotechnology organized by the Philippine Association of Nutrition on 22 March in Manila, Philippines. Symposium participants discussed the future of genetically modified organisms for nutrition improvement. IRRI Deputy Director General for Partnerships Willy Padolina presented a paper, Overview of biotechnology and GMOs principles and applications, and IRRI plant biotechnologist Swapan Datta presented the paper Current and potential benefits of GMOs for nutritional improvement of foods. Dr. Padolina stressed the need for modern biotechnology, field evaluation of transgenic crops, and government support to expedite the advancement of science and its proper utilization in Philippines. Integrated pest management course is back with more innovative content Almost a decade after IRRI offered its last course on Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in 1993, content experts of the IRRI Training Center (TC) and researchers in the Entomology and Plant Pathology Division (EPPD) and Crop, Soil and Water Sciences (CSWS) Division have developed a new, four-week training course on the topic. The course, held from 1 to 26 April, summarized various facets of IPM and the paradigm shift in the concept of IPM. Eighteen IRRI scientists helped develop the courseware. Additional contributions came from four specialists from CAB International (UK), Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization-Sustainable Ecosystems (Australia), University of Queensland (Australia), and Visayas State College of Agriculture (Philippines). Participants included 27 researchers and development personnel from national agricultural research and extension systems. They represented 12 countries in Asia and six countries in Africa, and were involved in research on pest management. IRRI launches new biannual magazine IRRI has launched Rice Today, a biannual magazine (April and October) dedicated to exploring the world of rice science and its impact on global food security, poverty alleviation, and environmental protection. The full-color magazine replaced the institute's annual report, which terminated with the 2000-2001 edition. This new reporting format focuses less on IRRI as an institution and more on developments and issues affecting rice farmers today. IRRI garners more communication awards IRRI's Communication and Publications Services (CPS) continued a recent tradition of garnering communication awards by winning two silver awards in the graphic design category of the 2002 international competition sponsored by the Agricultural Communicators in Education <http://www.aceweb.org>. One award went to the set of four landscape posters that originally appeared in the 2000-2001 Annual Report and the other was for the jewel box and CD design for the RiceIPM CD. Al Benavente Information Services IRRI International Rice Research Institute www.cgiar.org/irri Tel. +63 (2) 845-0563 Fax +63 (2) 845-0606 Email: irri@cgiar.org DAPO Box 7777, Metro Manila, Philippines ©2001 ANBio - Associação Nacional de Biossegurança. All rights reserved.