Women Farmers Talk About IPM

“Before IPM Field Schools we planted our rice and prayed that we might have a good harvest.  Now we know that we can actually control many of the factors which influence our harvests.”   

An IPM Farmer from
Thai Binh Province, Vietnam

Over two million rice farmers in Asia and South-east Asia have participated in IPM Farmer Field Schools (FFS) since the first Field Schools were conducted in late 1989 and early 1990 in Indonesia.  Farmers trained as Field School leaders, extension field workers, plant protection field workers, agronomy field workers, and NGO field workers have conducted Field Schools in the last ten years. Farmers who have participated in Field Schools have reduced their use of pesticides, improved their use of inputs such as water and fertiliser, realised enhanced yields, and experienced increased incomes.   IPM alumni are in the forefront of establishing sustainable agricultural systems in their villages and hence guaranteeing food security for themselves, their children, and generations to come.