Representatives of the International Rice Research Institute and the CGIAR Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security gave this presentation on applying and scaling up Alternate Wetting and Drying for paddy rice in Vietnam.

1. Applying and scaling up of 'alternate wetting and drying' (AWD)
for paddy rice in Vietnam
Dr. Vu Duong Quynh (IAE, IRRI, Vietnam)
Dr. Ole Sander (IRRI, CCAFS)
Michael Sheinkman (IRRI, CCAFS)
Greater Mekong Forum
On Water, Food and Energy
21-23 October, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

2. Introduction
• System of Rice Intensification (SRI)
– Adopted by MARD in 2007. Promoted in Red River Delta
• 1 Must do 5 Reduction (1M5R)
– Adopted by MARD in 2012. Promoted in Mekong River Delta.
• Alternative Wetting and Drying (AWD)
– Important component of both SRI and 1M5R.
– Often not practiced accurately when scaled up
through policy interventions.

3. Objectives
The objectives of this case study are to:
1) investigate the benefit of AWD in terms of economical
and environmental aspects
2) explore experiences on applying and scaling up the
AWD technology for paddy rice in Vietnam
3) identify opportunities and barriers for large scale
implementation of AWD in Vietnam
4) recommend the potential solution for up-scaling AWD in
Vietnam.

4. Material and Methods
Study sites
• AWD case study was conducted in An
Luong village, Nam Sach, district, Hai
Duong province
• The SRI case study was conducted in
Phuoc Son cooperative, Tuy Phuoc
district, Binh Dinh province
• The first 1M5R case study was
conducted in
Phu Hoa I hamlet, Chau Thanh district,
An Giang province
Tram I hamlet and in Trung Hung hamlet
in Vinh Loi district, Bac Lieu province

5. Material and Methods
Interviewing survey
The survey was conducted to interview 20
farmers from each of 3 selected study
sites on:
• The economical and environmental effects
of SRI/1M5R/AWD
• The opportunities for scaling up SRI/
1M5R/AWD
• Barriers of applying SRI/1M5R/AWD and
how to overcome the barriers to scaling up
SRI/1M5R/AWD
• Recommend plan for upscaling 1M5R/
SRI/AWD

6. • Better root development resulting
increasing nutrient use efficiency and
reducing ratio of lodging
• Increase cold resistant ability (spring
rice Northern provinces in VN
• Reducing of organically toxic
• Reducing un-effective tiller
• Reducing pest and disease
Benefits of Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD)

7. • Reducing pumping cost
• Reducing labor cost for irrigation
monitoring
• Stable pan layer for using harvesting
machine
• Reducing lost after harvesting
• Reducing CH4 emission.
Additional Benefits of AWD

8. Barriers of applying/scaling up of AWD in Vietnam
• Irrigation system is poor.
• Rice field is not flat
• Farm size is too small in the North
and Center of Vietnam (0.13
hectare/household)
• High rainfall in end of summer
autumn rice season (the South)
• Different rice varieties and different
sowing calendar
• Weed and rat problem

9. Additional barriers to applying AWD in Vietnam
• Farmer get problem in applying AWD in sodic and ferric
soil
• Farmer awareness is not equal between farmer
• Conflict on benefit between farmer and pumping station
(pumping fee)
• Rice income is low
• Salary for irrigation station staff is also low

10. • Consolidate small rice fields into a large
field
• Level rice fields using laser technology.
• Suitable irrigation management strategy
• Improve irrigation system by supplying
drainage canal.
• Balance benefits between farmer and
pumping station, with local cooperatives
acting as referee.
How to overcome barriers to applying AWD

11. 11
• Combine AWD in local extention
work and convine farmer to apply
AWD
• Scaling up AWD demonstration field
• Training
• Combine AWD in to 1M5R, larger
rice field demonstration
How to overcome the barriers to scaling up AWD

12. Economical benefit of 1M5R (including AWD) in Bac Lieu
Winter spring
(2011-2012)
Summer rice
(2012)
Winter spring
(2012-2013)
Winter spring
(2013-2014)
1M5R control 1M5R control 1M5R control 1M5R Control
Rice seed (kg/ha) 104 158 115 170 99 147 103 179
Total fertilizers (kg/ha) 456 477 645 545 424 462 415 483
Total number of
pesticide spray
(time/season)
6.8 9.2 5.0 8.0 6.4 9.1 8.0 10.9
Num of pumping
(time/season)
5 7 3 6 6 9 6 9
Rice yield
(tonne/ha(season)
7.13 6.91 6.23 5.83 7.13 6.63 8.04 7.58
Total input cost
(millionVND đ/ha)
18.52 20.36 18.65 22.74 19.29 22.72 20,54 24,56
Total imcome
(millionVND đ/ha)
40.08 37.57 31.15 29.15 38.05 35.21 43.23 40.76
benefit (millionVND
đ/ha)
21.55 17.21 12.49 6.40 18.75 12.49 22.69 16.20
Increasing benefit
compared to control
+ 4.3 +6.1 +6.3
+6.5

13. Economical benefit of 1M5R (including AWD) in An Giang
Winter spring (n=66) Summer autumn (n=76)Indicators
1M5R control Difference 1M5R control Difference
Seed (kg/ha) 115.4 191 75.6 109.0 181.7 72.7
Nitrogen
Fertilizer (kg
N/ha)
103.7 127.2 23.5 103.5 125.1 21.6
insecticide
spray
(time/season)
1.4 3.8 2.4 1.1 3.5 2.4
fungicide spray
(time/season)
2.7 3.7 1 3.1 4.6 1.5
Water pumping
(time/season)
7 8.5 1.5 6.4 7.7 1.3
Lodging (%) 4.9 15.9 11 6.8 17.7 10.9
Yield
(tonne/ha)
7.6 7.4 0.2 5.9 5.7 0.2
Inputs cost
(1000vnđ/ha)
2,490 3,134 644 3,418 4,053 635
Benefit (1.000
vnđ/ha)
21,371 17,129 4,242 12,876 8,570 4,306

14. Economical benefit of SRI (including AWD) in Binh Dinh
Indicators
SRI Conventional
practice
Reduction compare with
convention practice (%)
Seed cost
(100vnđ/ha)
1,821
2,126 16.7
Fertilizer cost
(1000vnđ/ha)
6,483
6,824 5.3
Pesticide cost
(1000vnđ/ha)
1,392
2,366 70.0
Labour cost
(1000vnđ/ha)
10,248
11,146 8.8
Water
pumping/season
9 8 25
Rice yield (tonne/ha)
8.2 7.6 7.4

15. Economical benefit of AWD in Hai Duong
Cultivation season
Seed
cost
Pesticide
cost
Fer
cost
Labour
cost
Sum of
cost
Rice
yield
Sum of
income
benefit
Spring
rice
920 2.706 6.218 12.000 22.539 5530 37.836 15.296
Summer
rice
943 3.439 6.110 12.500 23.673 5210 36.975 13.302
AWD
Average
931 3.072 6.164 12.250 23.106 5370 37.405 14.299
Spring
rice
1.103 4.413 5.811 12.800 24.819 5103 32.577 7.758
Summer
rice
1.060 5.103 5.232 13.000 25.386 4338 28.578 3.192
Conventional
Average
1.081 4.758 5.521 12.900 25.102 4720 30.577 5.475

16. The effect of AWD on rice plant development in Hai Duong
Cultivation Rice
season
Effective
tiller/m2
seed/
flower
P.1000 seed
(g)
Potential
yield (tạ/ha)
Real yield
(tạ/ha)
AWD Spring rice 323 163 21.03 110.72 59.84
Convention Spring rice 280 160 20.35 91.17 52.92
Cultivation Rice season
Root diametter (mm)
Root deapth/
0,1m2 (m/
0,1m2)
Root biomass (g/
0,1m2)
AWD Spring rice 0.8 876 81
Convention Spring rice 0.8 724 67

17. 17
Conclusion
• AWD, SRI and 1M5R reduced seed 41 -
90%; reduced 20 - 39% nitrogen
fertilizer, reduced pesticide used
27-62%, save water used 35%,
increased grain yield 5 - 15%,
increased benefit 15-40% in
comparison with conventional farmer
practice
• AWD, SRI and 1M5R increase the rice
resilience such as: reduce lodging,
increase drought and cold resistant
ability
• AWD, SRI and 1P5G improve soil
fertility and reduce 46-69% CH4
e m i s s i o n i n c o m p a r i s o n w i t h
conventional practice
a
ab
b
c
CH4 emission from paddy rice field

18. 18
Conclusion
Opportunity: if 1.14 million ha of rice in Red river Delta and 4.08
million ha of rice in Mekong river Delta applied by SRI (AWD) and
1M5R (AWD), respectively resulting in increasing rice productivity
3.01 million tones, and reducing 26.1 million tones of CO2
equivalent
However, the rice area applied SRI and 1P5G is too low: The main
reason are
i) Irrigation system is poor
ii) Different rice varieties and different sowing calendar leading to
difficult to control water
iii) Weed and rat problem
iv) Farmer and some local authority staff awareness is limited
v) Salary for irrigation station staff is also low

19. 19
Conclusion
Solution for upscaling SRI (AWD) and 1M5R (AWD):
i) Need detail direction for upscaling SRI (AWD) and 1M5R (AWD) from
National level to province, district and commune level
ii) Combine SRI (AWD) and 1M5R (AWD) in to larger rice field
demonstration
iii) Improving irrigation system with good supplying and drainage canal
iv) re-distribution rice field for making bigger rice field and leveling rice
field surface
v) Training, provide training materials, conduct more demonstration on
AWD rice and media
vi) Increasing salary for irrigation staff

20. Thanks you for your attention !