The Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP) – with over 900 partners from among international research institutes, national academia, development agencies and donors, extension services, private sector, NGOs and civil societies - develops new rice varieties with increased yield potential, enhanced tolerance and resilience against biotic and abiotic stresses, and enhanced grain quality and nutritious value. Visit the conference site for more information: http://www.egfar.org/gcard-2012

1. DRAFT
Breakout Session P1.1 National Food Security – Speaker Brief
The contribution of the Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP) to global food security
Bas Bouman (CGIAR Global Rice Science Partnership - GRiSP)
Context – the problems being addressed
Globally, 700 million tonnes of rough rice is harvested from about 160 million ha of land to provide a
staple food for some three billion people. The availability of low-priced rice is crucial for food
security of some 700 million extreme poor who reside in rice-eating countries. After a long period of
low prices, the price of rice has doubled from the pre-2008 level (the year of the global food crisis)
and is expected to remain high throughout the coming decade. A structural reason for the price
increase is the slowing growth in rice production, which declined from 2.7 percent between 1970
and1990 to 1.2 percent between 1990 and 2007. To fight poverty and provide food security, rice
production must increase with an estimated 1.5 percent annually to keep pace with the ever increasing
world’s population and rice demand.
The wide gap between the yields (the difference between actual yields and potential yields) of rice,
still exist in a number of the world’s rice granaries. Closing yield gaps has to be accomplished under
increasing scarcities of resources, especially water, land, labour, and energy. Costs of inputs such as
pesticides and fertilizers are rising because of increasing energy costs. We also need to avoid the
negative externalities that have led to environmental degradation and breakdown of ecosystems in
many agricultural landscapes since the Green Revolution. We need to intensify rice production while
at the same time minimizing the load of agrochemicals (fertilizers, pesticides) to soil, water and air,
and minimizing the emission of greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming.
Besides sustainably closing yield gaps, we also need to increase the yield potential of the rice plant
itself, as well as to make the rice plant more resilient to biotic (pests, diseases) and abiotic stresses
such as drought, submergence, salinity and problem soils and increase its nutritious value to contribute
to enhanced human health.
Current activities presented and discussed in the Session
The Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP) – with over 900 partners from among international
research institutes, national academia, development agencies and donors, extension services, private
sector, NGOs and civil societies - develops new rice varieties with increased yield potential, enhanced
tolerance and resilience against biotic and abiotic stresses, and enhanced grain quality and nutritious
value.
Recent examples are new hybrid rice varieties with 15 percent enhanced yield potential, submergence-
tolerant rices and the development of Golden Rice with enhanced pro-vitamin A content and C4 rice
with an expected 25-50 percent increased yield potential. GRiSP also develops and delivers
sustainable management technologies that increase resource-use efficiencies, yield and profit to
farmers, while at the same time reducing environmental externalities and enhancing biodiversity and
1

2. ecological resilience.
Examples are Site-Specific Nutrient Management (SSNM), water-saving technologies (AWD, aerobic
rice), Direct Dry Seeding, Integrated Pest Management and Ecological Engineering, Ecological-Based
Rodent Management (EBMR), and various post-harvest technologies such as improved dryers and
grain storage systems. GRiSP is product-oriented and impact-focused and pays special attention to
reaching out to the more than 100 million rice farmers and the various stakeholders in food security
and poverty alleviation.
Intended outcomes
The following are the key impacts forecast from the GRiSP:
By 2020:
 Expenditures on rice by those under the $1.25 (PPP) poverty line will decline by PPP $4.9
billion annually (holding consumption constant);
 Counting those reductions as income gains means that 72.2 million people would be lifted
above the $1.25 poverty line, reducing the global number of poor by five percent;
 As a result of increased availability and reduced prices, 40 million undernourished people
would reach caloric sufficiency in Asia, reducing hunger in the region by seven percent;
 Approximately 275 million tons of CO2 equivalent emissions will be averted.
By 2035:
 Expenditures on rice by those under the $1.25 (PPP) poverty line would decline by PPP $11.0
billion annually (holding consumption constant);
 Counting those reductions as income gains means that 150 million people would be lifted
above the $1.25 poverty line, reducing the global number of poor by 11 percent;
 As a result of increased availability and reduced prices, 62 million undernourished people
would reach caloric sufficiency in Asia, reducing hunger in the region by 12 percent;
 Nearly 1 billion tonnes of CO2 equivalent emissions will be averted.
Commitments to collective actions in 2012-2014 (national, regional or international)
i. With existing resources
GRiSP is committed to three main objectives, aligned with the three CGIAR strategic objectives:
Objective 1 (food for people): Increase rice productivity and value for the poor in the context of a
changing climate through accelerated demand-driven development of improved varieties and other
technologies along the value chain (addressed through themes 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6).
Objective 2 (environment for people): To foster more sustainable rice-based production systems that
use natural resources more efficiently, are adapted to climate change and are ecologically resilient, and
have reduced environmental externalities (addressed through themes 3, 4, and 6).
Objective 3 (policy for people): To improve the efficiency and equity of the rice sector through better
and more accessible information, improved agricultural development and research policies, and
strengthened delivery mechanisms (addressed through themes 5 and 6).
These objectives will be achieved through a set of six interconnected research and development
themes:
1. Theme 1: Harnessing genetic diversity to chart new productivity, quality, and health horizons;
2. Theme 2: Accelerating the development, delivery, and adoption of improved rice varieties;
3. Theme 3: Ecological and sustainable management of rice-based production systems;
2

3. 4. Theme 4: Extracting more value from rice harvests through improved quality, processing,
market systems and new products;
5. Theme 5: Technology evaluations, targeting and policy options for enhanced impact;
6. Theme 6: Supporting the growth of the global rice sector.
Within these Themes, product-oriented, interdisciplinary activities carried out with partners to
develop 94 innovative products and facilitate their uptake.
ii. With additional support
With expanded financial support and partnership arrangements, GRiSP will be able to develop more
innovative products and deliver them faster to larger numbers of beneficiaries. How much more, and
how many more beneficiaries can be reached faster will depend on the level of additional support.
iii. With specific large scale programme investment
Same as above
3