Adapting the Green Revolution for Laos

Initial efforts to introduce Green Revolution practices met obstacles in Laos due to the Vietnam War, early attempt to collectivise agricultural production, and limited investment in agricultural research. Faced with ongoing food shortages, the government embraced agricultural modernisation but lacked the resources to implement it. From 1990 to 2007, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and the Government of Laos built the nation’s capacity in rice research and developed improved varieties suitable to Lao farming conditions. The program has been credited with bringing the Green Revolution to Laos, supporting increases in rice production to levels of national self-sufficiency, and building national research capacity. This chapter traces the history and processes that have seen the development, use, and spread of improved rice varieties throughout Laos, particularly in the lowlands of the Central and Southern Regions. This history represents a departure from the Green Revolution narratives of other Southeast Asian countries, where the development and use of improved varieties was predicated on access to irrigation and fertiliser and favoured yield over other qualities like taste or aroma. Instead, efforts to improve rice production in Laos emphasised plant breeding based on local conditions and preferences—low input, rainfed production of sticky rice—and built the capacity of Lao institutions and researchers to continue rice breeding after formal project efforts ceased.