Asian rice bowls threatened by budget cuts<\/p>\n
By Martin Abbugao<\/p>\n
MANILA (AFP): A budget shortfall is threatening research at
\nthe International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) south of here
\nwhich aims to increase yields and feed Asia into the next
\ncentury.<\/p>\n
Even a potential \"super rice\" is under threat, bad news for
\nAsians, the world's most voracious rice consumers.<\/p>\n
Director George Rothschild said the institute, which has,
\nsince the late '60s, given the region its \"miracle\" rice
\nvarieties, will seek help from the private sector in a major
\ncampaign to keep the agency afloat.<\/p>\n
\"There are some projects that will be curtailed,\" Rothschild
\nsaid in a recent interview. One example, he said, are studies on
\nthe conservation of soil and water resources to ensure
\nsustainability of the environment.<\/p>\n
\"In addition, there will be impact on the speed with which we
\ncan produce new rice varieties which will yield much higher than
\npresent ones,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Cutbacks and realignment by donor countries such as the United
\nStates and the European Union has led to a deficit of over six
\nmillion dollars in IRRI's proposed 37-million-dollar budget this
\nyear.<\/p>\n
This forced IRRI to retrench 550 employees, or almost 50-
\npercent of its core staff, to save money to maintain its
\nlaboratories, a rice gene bank, other vital facilities and its
\ndwindling crop of world-class scientists.<\/p>\n
Washington, with a bulk of its foreign aid allotted to
\npreserving peace in the Middle East and Eastern Europe, has cut
\nback its two-million-dollar annual contribution to the institute
\nby about 40 percent.<\/p>\n
The EU has realigned its donations, while the United Nations
\nDevelopment Program trimmed its share. Japan, the biggest
\ncontributor, has not made any cuts, Rothschild said.<\/p>\n
IRRI, an autonomous, non-profit agricultural training and
\nresearch center, is currently perfecting a new rice variety,
\ndubbed by the media as \"super rice\", that will increase yields by
\nabout 25 percent from 10 tons a hectare (acre) to 13 tons.<\/p>\n
The plant's prototype has already been developed but
\nscientists are laboring to implant characteristics that will make
\nit resistant to pests and disease, as well as perfect a taste to
\nsuit the palates of Asians.<\/p>\n
IRRI's principal plant breeder Gurdev Khush said the institute
\nhad originally planned to distribute the plant to farmers by the
\nend of the decade.<\/p>\n
Rothschild, however, said that even research on the \"super
\nrice\" is imperiled, although he stressed that \"this is a high
\npriority project, we're trying to protect it at all costs.\"<\/p>\n
IRRI, which lies in the sleepy town of Los Banos south of
\nhere, has been credited with developing the IR8 high-yielding
\nrice variety that staved off massive famine in the region.<\/p>\n
But IRRI now faces a more formidable challenge with the
\ngrowing population threatening to overwhelm its meager resources.<\/p>\n
\"The challenge now is that everyday, 2.5 billion people eat
\nrice. By 2025, or just over a generation, that number will be
\nfour billion and that means we have to produce 70 percent more
\nrice from less land with less water and less labor,\" he said.<\/p>\n
\"Of course, that means new technologies. There are no quick-
\nfix solutions. Solving it needs solid, good research and this
\nrequires secure core funding,\" he said.<\/p>\n
IRRI is launching a campaign to expand its funding base to
\ninclude big corporations in the private sector, arguing that food
\nsecurity makes good economic sense.<\/p>\n
The increase in rice harvests over the past three decades has
\npushed the price of the cereal down by 40 percent, stemming a
\npotential source of social unrest, Rothschild said.<\/p>\n
Next month IRRI will launch, in Bangkok, the Asian Rice
\nFoundation, where the private sector and other donors can channel
\nfunds, he said. The U.S.-based Rockefeller Foundation, a major
\nIRRI backer, will provide the seed money.<\/p>\n
Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej has agreed to join the campaign
\nto rescue IRRI, which has trained many southeast Asian
\nscientists, including Thais, Rothschild added.<\/p>\n
He said IRRI would likewise seek increased financial
\ncontribution from China, India and Indonesia, which together
\nproduce and consume over 60 percent of the world's rice.<\/p>\n
The institution has already devolved some of its functions to
\nthe rice research institutes of other countries, and has
\ncontracted out services such as catering and vehicle maintenance.<\/p>\n
The IRRI was set up in 1960 by the Ford and Rockefeller
\nFoundations with the help of the Philippine government. It is one
\nof 18 non-profit international research centers supported by the
\nConsultative Group on International Agricultural Research
\n(CGIAR). CGIAR is sponsored by the UN Food and Agriculture
\nOrganization, the World Bank and the UN Development Program.<\/p>",
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