An opportunity for increasing factor productivity for rice cultivation in The Gambia through SRI |
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| Authors: | Mustapha Ceesay |
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| Institution: | (1) National Agricultural Research Institute, Brikama, The Gambia |
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| Abstract: | Promising results from an increasing number of field evaluations of the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) conducted in
Asia and Africa indicate that African farmers could increase their rice production while lowering costs of operation and reducing
the need for water by utilizing its principles and practices. This system relies not on external inputs to raise productivity
but on alternative methods for managing rice plants and the soil and water resources devoted to their cultivation. Farmers
in sub-Saharan Africa increasingly have to cope with the impacts of adverse climate effects because water shortages and long
dry spells during the cropping season are becoming common, even in lowland rice agroecosystems. SRI management practices create
both larger rice root systems that make their plants more resistant to biotic and abiotic stresses and more conducive environments
for beneficial soil microflora and fauna to flourish. Better plant growth and development result from promoting plant–soil
synergies. Controlled fertilizer management experiments conducted with SRI practices in The Gambia have showed that grain
production can be significantly increased without higher application of inorganic fertilizer and with less requirement for
water. SRI management practices with fertilizer application at the national recommended dose produced a grain yield of 7.6 t ha−1. Water productivity was greatly increased, with 0.76 g of grain produced per kg total water input, compared to 0.10 g of
grain per kg of water when the crop was continuously flooded. Recent hikes in fuel prices and consequent rises in input costs
are making domestic rice production less attractive and importation even more attractive. Computation of production costs
showed that SRI production, not needing heavy applications of fertilizer, is economically cost-effective. Achieving yield
increases through ever-higher fertilizer applications is not economically or environmentally viable. SRI management with recommended
fertilizer applications produced a net return of $853 ha−1 compared to $853 ha−1 compared to 37 when using farmers’ present low-productivity practices. |
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