Scaling RiceMoRe: Revolutionizing rice production monitoring in the South Central Coast of Vietnam

In the last week of June 2024, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and the Department of Crop Production (DCP) hosted a series of training workshops in the provinces of Phu Yen, Binh Dinh, and Quang Nam in Viet Nam. These workshops introduced the Rice Production Monitoring and Reporting system (RiceMoRe) to nearly 100 agriculture officers and provided comprehensive instructions on its use.

RiceMoRe is a result of collaboration between the DCP, IRRI, and the Center for Agriculture Digital Transformation and Statistics (DTS). This innovative system, which is available as both a web-based platform and a mobile application, offers a digitized and standardized approach to monitoring and reporting rice production.

During the opening remarks at the workshop in Binh Dinh province, Mr. Le Thanh Tung, Deputy Director General of DCP, emphasized that RiceMoRe is the official system of the Ministry to standardize and unify data collection and digital solutions nationally, starting with rice production and expanding to other crops in the future. DCP plans to implement the system nationwide in accordance with the national digital transformation goals. The training series is an opportunity for the three South Central Coast provinces to be early adopters and role models for other provinces.

Agriculture officers appreciated the usability and convenience of RiceMoRe compared to the conventional non-standardized means of reporting. Following the training, the three provinces in the South Central Coast have begun using the platform and started data entry for the summer-autumn cropping season of 2024. Prior to this, RiceMoRe was already in use in nine provinces in the Mekong River Delta and one province in the Red River Delta. Designed to enhance and digitize the existing rice data reporting system, RiceMoRe is in high demand among local officers across multiple provinces and regions of Vietnam.

The Farm Monitoring and Reporting Tool (FarMoRe) is a farm management reporting smartphone app designed to digitize the recording and assessment of rice production at the field and cooperative levels. This innovative tool not only collects detailed farming practices but also performs greenhouse gas (GHG) calculations, providing immediate results and enabling the tracking of changes in agricultural practices over time.

FarMoRe also garnered positive feedback and valuable input from agricultural officers. While RiceMoRe works with aggregated data at commune level, FarMoRe enables field and cooperative level or granular data management, which is crucial for many projects and activities, especially the work on GHG mitigation, origin tracing, and production unit code management. Mr. Phung Ngoc Chi, a district-level officer in Binh Dinh, expressed keen interest in using FarMoRe to gather rice production data directly from farmers and aggregate this information for each cooperative or village.

By streamlining the rice production monitoring and reporting process, RiceMoRe is set to play pivotal roles in Vietnam’s agricultural digital transformation, paving the way for a more efficient and standardized approach to crop data management. The transfer of RiceMoRe administration to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) is scheduled for completion before the end of the year, ensuring seamless integration and wider accessibility.

To further support this initiative, several additional training sessions for both RiceMoRe and FarMoRe are planned throughout the year. These sessions aim to expand the system’s implementation across various levels. While RiceMoRe training focuses on agriculture officers at provincial, district, and commune levels, FarMoRe training will also be extended to field agents and farmers, ensuring comprehensive adoption and utilization of these advanced digital tools.

This is a New Zealand Government-funded partnership with IRRI in support of the objectives of the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases. This activity is also part of the CGIAR Initiatives on Asian Mega-Deltas and Low Emission Food Systems, and the Agroecological Transitions for Building Resilient and Inclusive Agriculture and Food Systems Program funded by IFAD and EU.