Vimesco-Rice

Domestic rice production in Vietnam is under threat as a result of climate change, flooding, droughts of increasing frequency, duration and intensity, and saltwater intrusion. The objective of this project is to provide users in Vietnam with a demonstrator of operational tools for the dynamic monitoring of rice crops using radar-based remote sensing data.

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Example of rice growth stage mapping in the Mekong Delta region © GlobEO

Mitigating the climatic effects on rice cultivation

OVERVIEW

The Mekong Delta has been significantly affected by climate change in recent years. Droughts of increasing frequency, duration and intensity, along with flooding and saltwater intrusion, pose a growing threat to domestic rice production in Vietnam. In 2016, for example, spring rice production dropped by 17% in the Mekong Delta, following a drought that was intensified by the El Niño phenomenon.

To address these inescapable climate changes, the Vietnamese Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) and Ministry of Natural Resources and the Environment (MONRE) need to make decisions on the short- and long-term management of rice production. To this end, decisions are currently based on data collected in-situ at local level (villages, provinces, etc.) and collated in a national statistics database (General Statistics Office).

The project uses Earth observation satellites to monitor rice-growing areas. This involves methods and algorithms using radar-based remote sensing data to map information that complements and/or replaces in-situ data and statistics (area planted, maturity, crop calendar, productivity indicators, number of harvests per year).

The project will provide free and open access to data and products that should make it possible, in the short term, to monitor production status and harvest forecasts. In the longer term, the products will provide a basis for climate change mitigation measures (modified rice-growing calendar, fewer harvests per year, changing land use). The processing time and synoptic nature of the products should contribute effectively to crop monitoring and to the development of long-term actions in line with Vietnam’s Sustainable Development Objectives.

Application site(s)

Mekong Delta

DATA

Satellite

Copernicus Sentinel-1A and 1B. Time series every six days, with a resolution of 10m

Other

Climate data from weather stations in Vietnam and regional simulations (SEACLID/CORDEX-SEA project)
Socio-economic data: Vietnam Household Living Standard Surveys (VHLSS) – General Statistics Office of Vietnam
In-situ data on rice growing

RESULTS - FINAL PRODUCTS

An online portal showing the data processed and generated as part of the project:

Monthly map of rice-growing areas
Monthly map of growth stages
Annual crop density map (number of harvests per year)
Analysis results on the climate impact of changes observed

RELATED SCO PROJECT

Viet-ARRO (Vietnam Agriculture Resilient Recovery Observatory)

PROJECT NEWS

20/07/2022 : VietSCO at the heart of France-Vietnam cooperation with a feedback workshop in Hanoï
09/06/2021: Video (YouTube, in French) Vimesco-Rice, radar remote sensing for rice production: extract from the First Quarterly of the SCO France, where the project is presented under the angle "use of satellite data" followed by a progress report.
06/05/2021: the second Users and Science Team meeting and a bilateral working meeting with the VNDMA (Vietnam National Disasters management Agency) allowed to complete the project documents describing the users needs. These documents are currently being translated into Vietnamese.
April 2021: First results of scientific studies obtained by crossing rice field maps, drought indices and salt water intrusion over the period 2015-2020