Is it the time to go back to where we came from: Addressing the debate Organic Vs Inorganic rice farming through a new research approach?

By Chatura Rodrigo
IPS Researcher 

Achieving food security continues to be a challenge for Sri Lanka. Increasing population, changes in lifestyles, changes in food preferences and emerging middle income class demand more production.  Therefore, governments need to make sure they are self-sufficient in their staple food, in our case, it is rice 1. Records suggest that Sri Lanka has achieved self-sufficiency in rice, which as a country we have to be very proud of 2. However, there is a burning question that we need to ask from ourselves, “Is chemical fertilizer and pesticide based intensive agriculture a viable option for the future?” Much is being discussed and debated on the topic of the harmful effects of chemical fertilizer and pesticide based intensive agriculture, especially issues related to health and environment.  Some argue that Sri Lanka should look into the possibility of having more organic rice farming and some argue that it might not be viable 3. Therefore, there is a clear ambiguity, among the scholars and policy makers in establishing whether a shift into organic rice framing is a viable option or not. Existing research is not strong enough to make an informed policy decision, and hence there lies a research opportunity as well as a responsibility to all the environmental and agriculture economists of the country.

Role of ICTs in Early Warning of Climate-Related Disasters: A Sri Lankan Case Study

By Kanchana Wickramasinghe
IPS Researcher 

Need for an effective disaster early warning system for Sri Lanka was re-emphasised during the devastative storm which caused a number a deaths, a couple of months ago. The frequency and intensity of natural disasters in Sri Lanka including cyclones, floods and landslides are on an increasing trend, due to the impacts of global climate change (Ministry of Environment, 2010).  While a number of strategies are necessary to address growth in climate-related natural disasters, an effective early warning system can play a crucial role in lessening the probable negative impacts.

The traditional ways of disseminating disaster early warnings in Sri Lanka have been through radio and television, military forces and early warning towers.  However, during a disaster situation, there may be constraints in delivering the message, as mass media channels are not always switched on and the other approaches have limited reach.  Recent developments have shown that the information and communication technologies (ICTs) can be used effectively to disseminate disaster information.  However, developing countries in most of the cases are faced with resource constraints for the establishment and implementation of disaster early warning systems. 

Use of Traditional Paddy Cultivation as a Means of Climate Change Adaptation in Sri Lanka

By Chatura Rodrigo
IPS Researcher

Paddy occupies approximately 37 per cent (0.77 million ha) of the cultivated land area of Sri Lanka.     It is cultivated during two major seasons; Yala and Maha, where a majority is cultivated during the latter. Close to 1.8 million farm families are dependent on paddy farming throughout the country. The demand for paddy in Sri Lanka will increase at a rate of 1.1 per cent per year, which requires production also to increase at a rate of 2.9 per cent per year. Therefore not only is paddy the staple food of the country, but its cultivation is the livelihood of a significant portion of people (DSC, 2013). 

The ‘green revolution’ of the early 1960s, supported by agricultural policies such as fertilizer subsidies, placed Sri Lanka on the fast track to becoming a production economy. With subsidized fertilizer and the establishment of irrigation schemes, farmers were given the motivation to be more production oriented. These heavy production agricultural methods in the paddy sector were supported by the new and improved high yielding varieties. Even though these new improved paddy varieties were short termed and high yielding, they were chemical fertilizer and labour intensive and posed a negative externality to the environment (Wiggins and Brooks, 2010). Most importantly, these new improved production incentive paddy varieties and agricultural practices were not resilient towards climate change impacts.