Farmers plant monsoon paddy near Twante in Yangon Division. Pic: Than Htike Oo

THE weather during this year’s monsoon season has been favourable for farmers throughout the country, an agronomist from Myanmar Agriculture Service (MAS) said last week.

“We are getting rain in areas of the country that usually see little rainfall, including Mandalay, Magwe and Sagaing divisions,” said Dr Tun Winn, the manager of the Myanmar Rice Research Centre under MAS. “This means the country will produce more crops this year.”

According to statistics from the Department of Meteorology and Hydrology, so far this year Mandalay, Magwe and Sagaing divisions have experienced monsoon rainfall amounts ranging from 32 to 121 percent above average.

Dr Tun Winn said the high rainfall in the dry zone was “very wonderful” and he encouraged farmers in those regions to take advantage of the favourable weather by cultivating more crops.

He said the region was important for producing cotton, peas, peanuts, sesame seeds and sunflower seeds, some of which can be used to produce edible oil and all of which have high export potential.

“If we put more effort into oil crops this year, I believe we can boost the country’s self-sufficiency in edible oil,” he said.

The rain is helping not only dry zone crops but also rice.

In Myanmar rice is cultivated on about 16 million acres of land a year – 13 million acres in the rainy season and 3 million acres in summer.
About 80pc of the rice grown in the country depends on rainwater with the balance relying on irrigated water.

“We are lucky to have so much rain in Myanmar so all our rice fields can get sufficient water during monsoon. In the amounts of summer we can use irrigation,” Dr U Tun Winn said.

However, he said there was still a big gap between what Myanmar was capable of producing and its actual rice yield.

“We are only producing about 50pc of our potential rice yield. In China the gap is only 10pc and they are working to reduce it even more,” he said.

Dr U Tun Winn said Myanmar enjoyed perfect conditions for rice cultivation: huge land area, fertile soil, a good balance of rain and sunshine, and four major rivers.

“Farmers need to exploit the richness of our natural resources and lift productivity,” he said. “But they also need enough capital and strong market to help them succeed.”

“If a farmer knows there is a strong market for his crops and if he has the money to buy quality seeds, appropriate fertilisers and mechanical equipment, then he will put as much effort as possible into boosting yields,” Dr U Tun Winn said.

“In this way Myanmar can become the leading rice exporter in the region once again,” he said.