Improving rice tolerance of submergence and salinity to cope with climate change in coastal areas of Vietnamese Deltas

Thematic Areas:

Agricultural production

project summary

The extension project contributes to enhancing and sustaining future livelihoods and food security in Vietnam vis-a-vis climate change (CC).  It aims at developing adapted, submergence- and salt-tolerant rice varieties and water resources options, and disseminating them to farmers in two coastal provinces (Nam Dinh and Bac Lieu) of the two Vietnamese Red River and Mekong River Mega Deltas, which are hotspots for agricultural losses caused by sea level rise. The extension phase builds on and extends the successes of phase 1 of the Project in breeding and climate change-related hydrological characterization of the study areas. For breeding salt tolerant varieties, as the introgression of Saltol provides intermediate salinity tolerance, we plan to introgress an additional quantitative trait locus (QTL) for higher tolerance. Extensive field testing is needed to evaluate the new rice lines developed in phase I and to facilitate their release as national varieties and deploy them at the study sites. During the extension phase, the Project will continue to use MABC approach for developing elite rice lines with enhanced salinity tolerance with multiple QTLs (vs. single QTL in phase 1) and to generate “two-in-one” lines with combined tolerance to submergence and salinity, while maintaining their original characteristics preferred by farmers and consumers. The Project will continue to enhance the capacity of hydraulic models VRSAP and MIKE11 so that they can assess the water depth and salinity stress in farmers’ fields in the study sites (vs. only canal water surrounding or in the study areas). The extension phase will make sure that the final products will be delivered and used by farmers and local governments to influence their policy in their endeavours to formulate CC adaptation strategies. At the end of the extension phase, we expect that at least 2 elite lines incorporating multiple QTLs for salinity tolerance and 2 elite lines with combined tolerances of submergence and salinity will be developed; and at least 1 submergence and 1 salinity tolerant varieties released and deployed widely in Nam Dinh and Bac Lieu. The Project will work closely with local governments and water management institutions in assessing the vulnerability of rice production due to CC-induced hydrological changes and to propose adaptation strategies. The project will be coordinated by Agricultural Genetics Institute (AGI). Vietnamese staff members and students will spend extended working terms at International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) while IRRI scientists will regularly travel to Vietnam. Several trainees and students will participate in degree and non-degree training on MABC, GIS and water resource management.  Results of the project will be published in Vietnamese and international journals and presented in relevant meetings. Extension phase allows project products have direct application by farmers and local government to cope with climate change in the form of new varieties and adaptation options for water management.

Facts

PERIOD: 1 March 2013 to 31 July 2016
PROJECT CODE: 12-P04-VIE
COUNTRIES: Vietnam
PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Le Huy Ham
TOTAL GRANT: 4,950,000 DKK