Cooperation with Vietnam Increases Rice Yield

HAVANA, Cuba, Dec. 11 (acn) The Cuba-Vietnam cooperation project for rice production, implemented since 2010 to date, has allowed increasing yields to up to 4.58 tons per hectare.

Lazaro Diaz, general director of Agribusiness Group for Grains of the Ministry of Agriculture (MINAG), while summarizing on Friday its fourth stage, said that in that period 56,000 hectares were planted in 12 provinces and the special municipality of Isle of Youth, which produced 257,108 tons of rice.
The fifth stage (2016-2020), will concentrate on the efficient use of water, among other issues, he specified.
Le Quoc Doanh, deputy minister of agriculture of Vietnam, informed that as part of training tasks 18,000 people were trained in courses and workshops in Cuba.
We are assessing the experiences and results obtained in each of the territories to eliminate the shortcomings or limitations that prevent to increase yields, said the Vietnamese executive, who is traveling with a group of experts in this field who will stay in Cuba for several days to work on strategies for the fifth stage.
Idael Perez, vice minister of MINAG, told the Cuban News Agency that in the coming years the extension method, the search for new varieties, and the efficient use of resources to increase yields will be strengthened, because there are limitations with land and water.
Experts in the field said that the annual plan of rice production in Cuba will not be met this year due to the impact of drought.