Identification of drought tolerant rice varieties for sustainable yields in Kenya

1. Identification of drought tolerant rice varieties for
sustainable yields in Kenya
Phoebe Anyango Sikuku
Botany Department Maseno, Kenya
phoebenyangi@yahoo.com,sphoebe@maseno.ac.ke
Plate 8. Harvesting of rice from Alupe experimental fieldPlate 6. Marketing of rice by small scale farmers in open
air markets
Plate 7. Data collection in rice plots in Alupe- Busia
in 2015
In Kenya rice currently is second to maize in terms of consumer preference.
Kenya’s rice consumption in 2014 increased by 12%, wheat by 4 % and
maize which is the main staple food by 1% .The country’s annual rice
production in the year 2001 was 70,000 tonnes and in 2010 was 110,394.
Production has increased slightly at the rate of 6% per annum but still
nearly 73% of rice consumed in Kenya is imported. The low yield has been
attributed mainly to effects of drought, low soil fertility and lack of
identification of varieties tolerant to drought and adaptable to low fertility
soils . The situation is further aggravated by climate change which
which has led to unreliable rainfall and the ever escalating inorganic
fertilizer prices which has made this important input unaffordable to
most smallholder women farmers. Identification of low nitrogen
adaptable and drought tolerant rice varieties is thus crucial in sustaining
production in areas where water deficit and low soil fertility prevails.
The objective of the research is to improve rice productivity hence food
security among the rice growing smallholder farmers who are mainly
women in Western Kenya. Field experiments indicate that there is
genetic variability in the NERICA and MWUR rice varieties and NERICA
2 and 4 were tolerant to water deficit as compared to NERICA 1, 3 and 5
and MWUR 1, 2 and NERICA 4 were tolerant to low N because their
physiological, biochemical and yield parameters were less affected by
water deficit.
Fig 2. Rice production, consumption and import trends in
Kenya
Plate 4. Rice production in afield at LBDA Alupe in 2015
Fig.1. Map of Kenya showing suitable areas for rice
production
Fig. 4. Yield comp. of eight varieties grown at four
levels of N (LSD 0.05 )
Plate 3.Land preparation in smallholders farms in
Kenya
Plate 1. Field experimental photo of varietal response
to water deficit
Rice (Quantity)
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1000tons
Production Consumption Import
LBDA Rice Mill
 Dominion farm Mill
Middlemen
Supermarkets
Open air markets
Schools and hospitals
Plate 5. Farmers drying their paddy rice at a modern Rice
mill (LBDA) in Kenya
Plate 2. Green house pot experiment on response
of NERICA rice varieties to water deficit
Fig. 3 Net Pn of eight varieties grown at four levels of
nitrogen (LSD 0.05)