Alternate Wetting and Drying (AWD) Irrigation Technology Uptake in Rice Paddies of the Mekong Delta, Vietnam: Relationship between Local Conditions and the Practiced Technology

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Abstract

Worldwide increasing water demands have made alternate wetting and drying (AWD) irrigation an attractive water-saving technology for paddy rice farming. With AWD, rice paddies are intermittently irrigated, except during the rooting and flowering stages, reducing water use by 15%-40%. We assessed AWD uptake by comparing the standardized AWD used by official institutions and the practiced AWD used by farmers in An Giang Province, Mekong Delta, Vietnam. We observed that 1) farmers did not use plastic pipes to measure the water level, although these allow assessment of the correct timing for watering and 2) farmers also practiced AWD during the rainy season, despite it originally being developed as a water-saving technology. These modifications indicate that farmers have adapted AWD for use in their local farming conditions. Agrarian certification systems should be used to increase AWD uptake; however, these require standardized procedures. Therefore, this disparity between the standardized and practiced technology should be addressed to improve AWD uptake.

Journal

  • Asian and African Area Studies

    Asian and African Area Studies 15 (2), 234-256, 2016

    Graduate School of Asian and African Area Studies, Kyoto University

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