Wednesday, 19 March 2008

Agency Pushes to Boost Rice Yield

By Ros Sothea, VOA Khmer
Original report from Phnom Penh
18 March 2008

Khmer audio aired March 18 (1.21MB) - Listen (MP3)

The aid group Oxfam will distribute a video to promote a system of rice growing that improves yields, as the growing season approaches.

The System of Rice Intensification, or SRI, can improve rice yields by 150 percent, the group said Tuesday, creating a larger surplus that leads to more income and farm improvements.

At first, farmer Rum Mao did not believe in the new method. But, he said Tuesday, after practicing it, his yields were higher than in the past. He was pleased with the new system, he said, as it allowed him to sell more rice and earn a better living.

The group's information video, "Do You Speak SRI?," which it produced with the Cambodian Center for the Study and Development in Agriculture, will help farmers implement the method.

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