CSIR closes in on 10 new rice varieties

Dr. Wilson Dogbe, Head of Rice Programme at Savannah Agricultural Research Institute (SARI) at Nyankpala in the Northern Region, has said that the institute is close to introducing 10 new rice varieties next year as part of efforts to improve local rice production.

SARI, a research institution under the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), is positive the new varieties will help to increase farm yields as the country bids to cut rice imports.

The efforts of SARI add to other developments at the Crop Research Institute (CRI) at Fumesua in the Ashanti Region, where researchers are also developing new rice varieties with extremely desirable qualities such as being high-yielding and resistant to common pests and diseases.

Dr. Dogbe is therefore advocating a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model to promote and boost rice production in the country.

The support, he noted, will enable the farmers get access to logistics needed to increase their farm produce for local consumption and export.

Currently, Ghana’s rice import bill stands at about US$500million, which could more than double if statistical projections on rice imports are realised as consumption is projected to reach about 1.6 million tonnes within the next five years.

The country now produces about 30% of the total annual rice consumption of 800,000 metric tonnes in the country.

Dr. Dogbe is confident Ghana can be rice sufficient if the right strategies are put in place to assist rice farmers to increase their production.

“If the farmers were supported with the needed farming inputs at the right time, with high yielding seeds coupled with education on new farming methods and good agronomic practices, Ghana would not rely heavily on rice imports to meet local consumption,” he explained at a rice demonstration farm at Cheshei, a farming community in the Tamale Metropolis.

The visit also afforded the team to interact with Farmer-based Organisations (FBOs) that are beneficiaries of an Agricultural Value Chain and Mentorship Project (AVCMP) being implemented by SARI, a research institution under the Centre for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and other partners. It is being funded by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA).

Dr. Dogbe said more than 16,000 smallholder farmers in 16 districts in the Northern Region will benefit directly from the project using rice, maize and soya beans value chains, while another 32,000 will be reached indirectly through radio and video shows.

He said the project is also aimed at helping farmers to increase their incomes, ensure food security and create access to a wider market.

Some farmers who shared their experiences under the project were encouraged by the efforts of SARI and its partner implementing agencies, as well as AGRA, in helping them to improve on their livelihoods by boosting production output.

The secretary of the Cheshei FBO, Stephen Issifu, appealed for government to support them with tractors for their farming activities, as one of the main challenges for the farmers is access to tractors to plough farms before cultivation.