Manila, Philippines - Fronting the Pacific Ocean, Bicol is one of the Philippines’ most disaster-prone regions, but farmers here now have a reason to expect higher productivity in spite of more challenging weather conditions. This is thanks to Green Super Rice (GSR) lines and other stress-tolerant rice varieties that are being introduced and replicated by the Department of Agriculture (DA) and FAO.

In the Bicol Region, demonstration farms that feature GSR lines have been established in cooperation with local government units to allow farmers to observe and compare stress-tolerant lines from varieties that they traditionally use. The sites for these demonstration farms have been specifically chosen because they are located in communities where flood, drought and/or saltwater intrusion are prevalent. In these areas, farmers often have to live with reduced yield because of these hazards.   

For Efren Dayaon, a rice farmer from Mercedes in Camarines Norte, flooding is an accepted occurrence in his community. During severe flooding, they are forced to save what they can by harvesting their crops earlier than they should.

 “Because of the saltwater intrusion and drought and with no irrigation to wash out the salt particles from my farm, my harvest had gone down to as low as 14 bags.” Efren said. “Now, you can see how the seeds [GSR lines] are performing in spite of the condition of my farm. I think I can harvest more than 100 bags by the end of this cropping period.”

Conditions can be equally challenging for farms in drought-prone areas without irrigation facilities. Many farmers in these areas only have one cropping period for rice in one year and would have to wait several weeks or months before being able to plant again. With the changing climate patterns, however, predicting the best time to plant is becoming more difficult for farmers like Frank Piquit, who has been farming rice for more than 30 years.

“We now experience the extremes here: flooding during occasional rains, and drought at the height of the summer season,” he said. “I plant short-term crops like melon and watermelon to help us get by, because I do not have the resources to risk planting rice when the weather gets so unpredictable.”

While farmers like Efren Dayaon acknowledge that extreme weather conditions will continue to be a challenge, he’s now more hopeful about the future as he stands proudly over his rice field. “Neighbours who pass by my farm often ask about the GSR lines. They are impressed that the rice plants are still in good condition in spite of the saltwater intrusion.”

The introduction of GSR lines as a good practice option for DRR is part of an ECHO-funded FAO regional DRR project supporting agriculture in Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Laos, Philippines, Democratic People’s Republic of Korea). Aside from the GSR lines, the project is also showcasing other good practice options including vegetable gardening, more efficient use of fertilizer and improved soil and water management practices. These practices can make a big difference for smallholder farmers in terms of increasing their agricultural productivity and improving farm-level resilience.

Since 2009, FAO and the DA have been collaborating to enhance climate risk management and disaster preparedness in Bicol and today is a model for DRR initiatives. The DA Regional Field Office in Bicol established a Technical Unit for Disaster Risk Reduction and Management, and produced a Regional Plan of Action, along with 15 community development plans with local counterparts and communities. DIPECHO-funded project is also present in the Caraga and Davao Regions in Mindanao.