Irrigated Rice Research Consortium

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Irrigated Rice Research Consortium (IRRC) was formed in 1997 to improve natural resource management in irrigated rice systems. Based in Los Baños, Laguna, Philippines, it operates in Asia under the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) with Dr. Grant R. Singleton as its coordinator.

IRRC partners with national agricultural research and extension systems (NARES), NGOs, and the private sector to share and adopt technologies that protect natural resources while boosting rice production. It is active in 11 countries: Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Vietnam. Its goal is to strengthen interdisciplinary, NARES-driven research, connect research with extension services, help farmers adopt new technologies, and promote environmentally sustainable rice production to meet growing food demands.

The consortium was created to identify regional irrigated-rice research needs and to foster multi-disciplinary work. Over time, IRRC has expanded its focus to improving the delivery of appropriate natural resource management (NRM) rice technologies across Asia. IRRC began with three main projects in Phase I (1997–2000), including the Hybrid Rice Network and Rice IPM initiatives, and developed field tools like a Rice: Nutritional Disorders and Nutrient Management handbook. Phase II (2001–2004) emphasized regional research needs, collaboration, and linking research to national programs, with work groups organized around problems and impact. A postharvest technologies group was added in 2004.

Phase III (2005–2008) established work groups aligned with farmers’ problems in irrigated rice, built a coordination unit to improve production and give work groups social science and development-communication skills, and launched the IRRC Country Outreach Program (ICOP) in 2006 to broaden collaboration with local governments, policymakers, extension workers, farmers, the private sector, NGOs, and donors. Phase IV (2008–2012) further strengthened research-extension partnerships, focused on natural resource needs, and promoted technology adoption. A climate change work group was added in 2011, bringing the total to six work groups.

IRRC continues to prioritize capacity-building for NARES partners, improving technologies for productive and ecologically sustainable irrigated rice production, and disseminating practical production principles. Donors, led by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), provide most of the funding, complemented by support from other international organizations and partners.