Production Economics of Rice in Different Development Regions of Nepal <Article>

Rice is the most important staple food crop grown in Nepal. This study tries to analyze the production situation and production efficiency of rice in different development regions of Nepal. In this study 480 farmers were selected randomly from 12 districts representing entire five development regions and surveyed using semi-structured questionnaire. This information was supplemented by the information obtained from group discussions, observations and other secondary sources. With average landholding of 1.6 ha/household, 64.6% of the respondents were growing rice under 1 ha of land on an average. Western Development Region dominated all other development regions in terms of average production, marketed amount and yield. The benefit-cost ratio of rice production was the highest in Central Development Region indicating the most efficient production practice in the country. This is mainly due to easy availability and judicious use of production inputs. The overall net profit was Rs 16,147 per ha. The most prominent production problems as perceived by the farmers are lack of technical know-how, lack of irrigation, lack of organized credit facilities, and lack of quality inputs at the time of need. These problems need to be addressed to improve the production situation and efficiency of rice production in the country.