AfricaRice : Average rice yields in sub-Saharan Africa jump after the rice crisis
Channel: africaricecenter
Date: 14/03/2013

An analysis by the Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice) has revealed that the paddy rice production growth rate in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) shot up from 3.2% per year before the rice crisis (2000--2007) to 8.4% per year after the rice crisis (2007--2012). 

The analysis also showed that average rice yield jumped by about 30% from 2007 to 2012 and that it is increasing at a faster rate than the global average.

"We were pleased to learn that paddy rice production in SSA increased by 2.8 million tonnes from 2000 to 2007, and then accelerated, increasing by 4.7 million tonnes in the period 2007--2012. But what's more important, the analysis revealed that average rice yield in SSA increased by about 11 kg per ha per year from 1961 to 2007 and by a spectacular 108 kg per ha per year from 2007 to 2012, despite drought and floods in several African countries in 2011 and 2012," said AfricaRice Deputy Director General Dr Marco Wopereis.

For more information on this analysis, visit Dr Wopereis' Blog @  marcowopereis.wordpress.com

Video credit : Savitri Mohapatra, R.Raman, AfricaRice