MSc Sandwich Research Program Opportunities are now offered to Filipino students

As part of the 6-year capacity building for Higher Education program implemented by the University of the Philippines, Los Banos (UPLB), the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), and the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA), UPLB now offers Sandwich Research Scholarships for incoming and continuing Filipino MS students that are presently enrolled in the university.

Women farmers from Bihar participate in modern rice production training at IRRI South Asia Regional Centre

Forty women from different districts of Bihar, India participated in a modern rice production training designed to equip them with skills and knowledge and empower progressive women engaged in rice-based agri-food systems. Modern rice production technologies was organized by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in partnership with Bihar Agricultural University, Sabour under the Climate-Resilient Agriculture Project of the Bihar State Government.

Held on 24 to 26 August at the IRRI South Asia Regional Centre in Varanasi, the training and capacity development and exposure visit recognizes the contribution of women who make up more than 50% of the total workforce in farming activities in Bihar. However, women farmers often lack the knowledge and skill sets and need to be capacitated to accelerate production, increase their productivity and income, and hasten climate change adaptation and disaster risk management in agriculture.

Through the training, the participants learned best-bet packages for climate-resilient and sustainable rice production, quality seed production and storage, direct-seeded rice as an alternative crop establishment method, site-specific nutrient management, water management strategies in rice cultivation, harvesting and post-production practices for rice, rice-value addition, and the role of women in agriculture and rural development. 

The women also acquired knowledge in mechanization and postharvest practices, natural farming, and multiple low-cost bio inputs for improving soil carbon and fertility. 

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IRRI Nepal and FWU train young scientists to strengthen research design and data analytics in the face of climate change

Participants and dignitaries of the training program at the inaugural session in front of Faculty of Agriculture, FWU, Tikapur, Kailai

A five-day training entitled “Robust experimental designs and smart statistical tools for rice research in the face of climate change” was held from August 29 to September 2 at the Faculty of Agriculture, Far Western University (FWU), in Tikapur, Kailali, Nepal. The event was co-organized by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and FWU with the objective of transferring critical skills on research design, data handling, processing, analysis and scientific writing.

One IRRI-NARES Rice Breeding Network launches in India to enhance genetic gains in South Asia

South Asia, for years, has been trying to tackle different challenges in their agrifood system. Some of these challenges are identifying genetic resources, mapping traits for drought, salinity, and submergence tolerance, as well as identifying grain quality requirements based on the market demand in South Asia. As a response, plant breeders at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and national agricultural research and extension systems (NARES) convened to launch the One IRRI-NARES Rice Breeding Network Team-South Asia in India.

IRRI Education opens three courses on rice research, breeding, and sustainable cultivation

The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) Education opened on rice research and production, rice breeding, and sustainable rice cultivation.

The Rice Research to Production (RR2P) face-to-face course kicked off on 05 September at the IRRI headquarters with 69 research and extension staff of the Department of Agriculture (DA), DA attached agencies, local government units, and state universities and colleges participating in the 5-day training. The program is part of the fourth rollout of the RR2P course, which started on 27 June, where the participants will get to apply what they have learned from the online component of the course under the guidance of IRRI’s resource experts. This RR2P program is under the DA-IRRI project, Strengthening the capability of the national research for development and extension partners for research, development, and extension of information and technologies to improve productivity and resilience of rice-based farming communities in the Philippines.

Expanding the DSRC horizons in Andhra Pradesh

Under “Precision Direct-Seeded Rice-based Diversification Systems for Transforming Labour Requirement, Yields and Profitability of Smallholder Farmers in Odisha” (IRRI-GoO-DSR-Odisha Project), a 5-day interstate exposure visit of lead farmers and potential Service Providers (SPs) from Odisha was organized from 3-7 August 2022. This project is supported by the Government of Odisha and is being implemented by IRRI in close coordination with the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Empowerment (DAFE), Government of Odisha. A total of 25 participants representing 3 lead farmers and 2-DSR- SPs each from Bargarh, Ganjam, Kalahandi Mayurbhanj and Puri districts of Odisha were involved in the event.

Modern rice breeding training kicks off in Bangladesh

More than 60 scientists from Bangladesh Rice Research Institute (BRRI) participated in a virtual training on modern rice breeding organized  by the Rice Breeding Innovations Platform (RBI) of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI).The training, Statistical genomics and quantitative genetics applications in modern rice breeding, aims to improve the capacity of BRRI scientists in cutting-edge breeding approaches to enhance genetic gains and help institutionalize genomic selection at the institute.