The Evolution of the System of Rice Intensification as a Socio-Technical Phenomenon: A Report to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Abstract

This document reports the findings and conclusions of a short exploratory study into the emergence, spread and impacts of the System of Rice Intensification (SRI). SRI is a crop management system that has been depicted as a more productive and more ecologically sustainable method for cultivating rice. It is said to be particularly appropriate, accessible and beneficial for poor and marginal farmers because it can achieve substantial increases in productivity and grain yield without the need for improved seeds or chemical inputs. It has also been reported that SRI methods can produce much higher yields while consuming much less water. These claims have provoked controversy among some scientists.

With the goal of moving the debates about SRI forward, this research project was designed to evaluate the current state of knowledge about the origins, spread and impacts of SRI, to examine the mechanisms and processes that have helped to spread the system internationally, and to identify key knowledge gaps. The project has made several useful advances. First, the report shows that SRI was shaped not only by close observation of rice plants, but also by the resource-constrained setting of Madagascar during the 1970s and 1980s, where the system was originally developed. In particular, it was designed to suit the capacities of poor and marginal Malagasy farmers and their agro-ecological and institutional context.

Second, our review of literature on the biophysical mechanisms involved in SRI and studies on the adoption and impacts of the system has made progress identifying areas of knowledge that are fairly well established and the many areas where gaps in knowledge remain. Third, there is a dearth of detailed and reliable information on the international spread of SRI. Fourth, it is clear that the adoption of SRI methods is associated with quite substantial changes in allocations of inputs, especially labour, water and fertilizer. These include changes to the temporal distribution of labour demand and the gender division of labour. The available literature allows few firm conclusions to be drawn regarding the impacts of these changes, which theoretically may be positive or negative for different households or groups. Finally, substantial variations have been found in the ways that SRI is specified in different locations and in the scientific literature compared to grey literature. Further research will be required to make sense of these patterns....

SRI raises important questions about the connections between agricultural research and agricultural development, the mobilization of social and professional networks, the exploitation of scientific knowledge, communication networks, and learning processes. The report concludes by identifying a range of questions and proposing an integrated, interdisciplinary research approach for making further progress in the understanding of this important phenomenon.

Keywords: System of Rice Intensification, SRI, rice, agriculture, technology