The possibility of a rice green revolution in large-scale irrigation schemes in Sub-Saharan Africa

Abstract

The importance of rice in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is increasing rapidly, as the consumption of rice is increasing and the imbalance between domestic production and consumption has been growing in SSA. Therefore, national and international attention now centers on how to increase rice production in SSA as an important component of the region's strategies on food security. One possible strategy to achieve this goal is to take an Asian-style approach as Asia has successfully achieved a rice Green Revolution over the last several decades. This study aims to investigate the potential of SSA's large-scale irrigation schemes for a rice Green Revolution in the region as well as the conditions for achieving the potential. For this study, we use household-level data collected in six SSA countries: Uganda, Mozambique, Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, and Senegal.