System of Rice Intensification Tanzania Project shows promising results in improving farmer livelihoods

In Tanzania, the agricultural sector is dominated by smallholder farmers who are vulnerable to climate extremes such as droughts and erratic rainfall, in addition to other challenges such as land degradation, poor soil health management and limited access to new farming technology.

The emphasis of the Norad-funded project SRI Tanzania is on the promotion of the climate-smart agriculture technology System of Rice Intensification (SRI). The project is currently being implemented in five districts in Tanzania by the Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research (NIBIO) and the Tanzania Agricultural Research Institute (TARI).

"Integrating environmental management aspects with the SRI increases Tanzanian smallholders' productivity, climate resilience and mitigation," says project coordinator Dr. Udaya Sekhar Nagothu, Director of NIBIO's Center of International Development (CID).

"Two years in, and we're already seeing positive results, with an increased rice yield of 30-40% for the farmers we've trained and reduced seed use from 30 kg to 4 kg per acre."

Improved living standards for the farmers

The SRI Tanzania project aims to achieve three key outcomes: improving sustainable rice productivity among smallholders, increasing adoption of SRI practices by farmers—including women and youth—and strengthening institutional collaboration on climate-resilient rice and resource efficiency.

To support these goals, the project has developed a climate-smart rice technology toolbox, offering guidance on nutrient, soil, and pest management, as well as climate-resilient rice varieties.

One farmer who has benefitted from this is MS Athumini Iddy Mkangamo from Kilombero district. During the annual project meeting which took place in Morogoro in Tanzania on January 13th, she shared that the SRI training sessions and support that she and her fellow farmers have acquired by participating in the project has had a significant impact on their livelihoods.

"By achieving higher yields with lower input, our income has increased, enabling us to send our children to school, build a roof on our house, and lay down concrete floors. Not only that, my family now has the means to acquire a motorbike which is very important for our transportation needs," she says.

Dr. Atu Bilaro, project co-coordinator from TARI, says that improving farmers' living standards, is one of the most important aspects of the project.

"Publications and reports are one thing, but the impact this project has on the livelihoods of the many farmers either directly or indirectly involved in the project, is what decides whether we have succeeded in our work," he says.

System of Rice Intensification

The System of Rice Intensification (SRI) involves a set of practices to cultivate rice with improved yields and water use efficiency. The system typically includes planting younger seedlings that are 12–15 days old, transplanting single seedling in rows with wider spacing, alternate wetting and drying irrigation, mechanical weeding with push weeders, reduced water usage, and organic management.

The aim of all these measures is to promote better physiological conditions, healthier root and tiller development, and increased yields.

In the SRI Tanzania project, SRI training aimed at equipping farmers with new skills of rice production has been provided throughout. One of the technologies introduced is rice mat nurseries. These involve growing young rice seedlings on a compact mat of soil or other medium, allowing for easy and less damaging transplantation.

The method, which favors growing young seedlings is efficient and practical, promotes healthy root development, and is especially useful for practices such as the SRI.

South-to-south collaboration

The project technologies that have been and continue to be implemented by smallholder farmers in Tanzania, have been developed in cooperation with NIBIO's Indian partners from similar projects implemented in several states in India.

"These partners now participate in the SRI Tanzania project and share their knowledge and experience with our colleagues in Tanzania. This south-to-south cooperation has proved to be an effective way to introduce new climate resilient agricultural technologies to farmers," says Dr. Nagothu.

NIBIO's CEO Ivar Horneland Kristensen is impressed with the SRI Tanzania project's progress so far.

"I really believe in the way this project is reaching out to the farmers. It is very uplifting and inspiring to talk to them and learn about the significant impact it has made on their lives in such a short time," he says.

"The net gain for the farmer is substantial, enabling opportunities like paying school fees or investing in their farms. This modest project has a profound impact by providing capacity building through the sharing of vital knowledge, which in turn fosters self-sustaining solutions that can have a lasting effect on their livelihoods."

Kristensen also reflects on the project's wider potential.

"On a larger scale, if all two million rice farmers in Tanzania adopted this approach, the impact would be transformative. Tanzania could not only secure its own food supply but also help feed six neighboring countries, improving lives and bolstering regional and global food security," he says.

Provided by Norwegian Institute of Bioeconomy Research