A UK-led research project, EcoPromMIS, is launching a three-year initiative in Tolima and Casanare to create a sustainable rice and oil palm production system. The platform will integrate data on cultivation cycles, fertilization, weed management, greenhouse gases, and biodiversity. The project, funded by the UK Space Agency, involves Colombian partners including Fedearroz and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT).
International Collaboration Forms Project
The EcoPromMIS (Ecological Production Management Information System) initiative represents an international collaboration. Roelof Kramer, Executive Director of the British company Agricompas, met with Rafael Hernández Lozano, General Manager of Colombia’s National Rice Federation (Fedearroz), to discuss the project’s progress. The consortium includes British institutions like Rothamsted, Agricompas, Elastacloud, and Pixalitycs, alongside Colombian partners such as Fedearroz, CIAT, Cenipalma, and the Fundación Solidaridad, which won the call issued by the UK Space Agency.
The total investment amounts to 4.8 million British pounds (approximately 16 billion Colombian pesos). The UK Space Agency is providing 80% of the funding, with the remaining 20% co-financed by the participating institutions.
Project Team Defines Work Plan
The project will be implemented in two pilot zones. The first is located in Ibagué, Tolima. The second is in Tauramena, Casanare.
The project team has already held multiple working sessions at Fedearroz’s facilities in Bogotá. These meetings were dedicated to defining a coordinated work plan for the initial research phase. The core objective is to establish a database that authorities like Fedearroz can consult to refine their planting and production protocols. The coordinators have also determined that constant technical support will accompany all procedures during this research phase.
