Diffusion of Submergence-Tolerant Rice in South Asia

Abstract

Climate change is expected to increase the incidence and magnitudes of extreme weather events. To help farmers mitigate the expected impacts of extreme weather events, abiotic stress-tolerant crop varieties have been developed. The diffusions of the stress-tolerant crop varieties, however, have been limited. This chapter reviews recent studies on the adoption and impacts of the submergence-tolerant rice varieties in South Asia. Studies have identified significant benefits of those rice varieties in South Asia using various survey and analytical methods. However, farmers have problems identifying submergence-tolerant rice varieties in informal seed markets. Using DNA fingerprinting, a study found that many farmers in Bangladesh could not identify varietal names correctly. Effective public interventions are needed to help farmers in flood-prone areas adopt submergence-tolerant rice varieties.