Improving and Scaling up the System of Rice Intensification in West Africa

Between June and August 2013 two organizations held the
first large regional trainings SRI training in Central and Northern Benin. DEDRAS, a Christian NGO working in Northern Benin, conducted trainings for 160 farmers and six technicians
in Banikoara, N’Dali and Parakou; CARDERE, the agricultural
extension service of the Gov. of Benin, conducted trainings for
100 farmers in Tchaourou and Parakou.
Central and Northern Benin are transitional zones from the
more humid parts of Southern Benin to the semi-arid, Sahelian
environment that dominates in the far north and into neighboring Niger and Burkina Faso. Central and Northern Benin
have a mono-modal rainy season, lasting from April-June until
September-November, in contrast the bimodal rainy seasons
in Southern Benin.
Farmer trials conducted during the rainy season in 2013 were
hampered by extremely poor rains, which started late and
were inconsistent throughout the season. Farmers in rainfed upland conditions, especially in the Banikoara region, had
near total crop failures, both for SRI trial plots and their traditional fields. Those farming in lowland valleys or depressions,
where water was more accessible, had better yields, and SRI
plots performed well. Rains in Central Benin were better, but
still very poor… read more: https://sriwestafrica.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/benin-sri-rice-trip-report-mar-20141.pdf