New Conceptual Framework for SRI

A New Conceptual Framework for the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) for Research and Practice, was presented at 2ndAgriculture and Climate Change Conference, Sitges, Spain, 26-28 March 2017.

This framework was used for the first time at a large scale in the 13-Country Project Improving and Scaling up SRI in West Africa.

The conceptual framework is based on the guiding principles of SRI and not on the production practices per se. It provides practitioners with the freedom to adapt the rice production practices to their local environment and develop innovations, while at the same time striving for the implementation of the principles.

This approach allows to move beyond the outdated and dogmatic vision of SRI being a rigid technology, often debated by the critics of SRI trying to pin down which crop production practices are part of SRI and which are not. These debates created a lot of confusion, have remained theoretical, have slowed support and not been helpful for rice farmers.

But my taking the conceptual framework as the reference, practitioners and project managers in West Africa shared a common understanding about SRI, spoke the same language and were ready from the start to train technicians and farmers and to create best SRI practices for any site-specific rice production situation across the region. Results from the 3-year project are summarized in the Project's Summary Report: