1. What are the factors that affect the Rice Productivity?

Rice production in the Philippines is an important aspect of the country's food supply and
economy. The Philippines is the 9th largest rice producer in the world, accounting for 2.8% of
global rice production.[1] The Philippines was also the world's largest rice importer in 2010.[2]

i) Geographic and Climatic Factors

Temperature regimes greatly influence not only the growth duration but also the growth
pattern of the rice plants. In temperate countries, generally, low temperature regimes limit
rice cropping to only one season. On the other hand, it is well known that respiration is low
at low temperatures. The low respiration due to low night temperatures during the grain
development phases of rice plants planted in areas outside of the TCTC zone may favor grain
development and filling, thus high yields.
ii) Solar radiation  
Solar radiation is essential for photosynthetic activity. As such, the growth, development
and yield of rice plants are affected by the level of solar radiation. Rice yields are closely
correlated to the solar radiation during the reproductive and ripening phases of the rice
plants
iii) Day-length 
With the availability of an increasing number of high yielding and non-photoperiod-
sensitive rice varieties, the effect of day-length on wetland rice production is becoming less
and less important. However, the long day and short night regimes coupled with high level
of solar radiation during reproductive and ripening phases of rice, planted in countries
having temperate climate, are generally favorable for high yield.
iv) Winds and relative humidity 
Winds at high speeds during the typhoons are very detrimental to the growth and
production of rice plants, especially when they occur during the flowering and ripening
phases of rice.
v) Land And Soil Factors
Wetland rice is grown on practically all types of soils, from sandy loam to heavy clay.
However, it is well established that the heavy soil characteristic of river valleys and deltas
are better suited to wetland rice production than lighter soils. An ideal rice soil should
contain up to 50-60% of finer fractions of silt and clay. Variations in soil conditions and the
extension of rice cultivation to unsuitable soils are among the factors causing wide disparity
in yields. Many wetland rice farmers practice puddling during land preparation to level rice
fields and to conserve water. Puddling, however, may create highly unsuitable conditions for
upland crops grown in rotation with rice. Soils which have an ability to Bconvert to granular
aggregated structure after drying are suitable for wetland-rice based cropping systems.
vi) Water Supply Factors
The rice plants generally have shallow root systems. Water deficiency or drought stress has
been recognized as the most important limiting factor to wetland rice production.  Water
deficiency may happen at any time during the cropping season of rainfed wetland rice. The
damage on rice crops varies with the developmental stage during which water deficiency
occurs and the duration of the water deficiency.
vii) Farming Practices
The environmental conditions and the preference of the population on grain quality
determine the selection of rice varieties for planting. The diversity of planted rice
varieties partly explains the differences in yields obtained from different countries
viii) Good, clean and healthy seeds
Improved rice varieties are basic conditions for healthy growth and development of rice
plants, at least during their early phases. The level of the development of the local seed
industry and distribution, therefore, has great influence on the performance and yield of
wetland rice. Utilization of seed of poor quality is one of the main factors responsible for the
low yields obtained by many farmers in tropical Asia.
ix) Land preparation
Land preparation indirectly affects rice yield through resultant better field conditions. Land
preparation is recognized as an effective weed control practice. Also, good land preparation
facilitates better water management and to a lesser extent fertilizer management in
wetland rice production. 
x) Weeds, diseases, insect pests and other biological agents such as rats, birds, etc. 
Weed growth and competition increase when soils are subject to alternating wet and dry
conditions. Bird and rat damages are particularly important when rice fields are small and
isolated. However, the limited available information does not allow a good comparison on
the yield losses due to these constraints in different countries. On the other hand, intensive
use of chemical products for insect, disease, and weed control in wetland rice production
has changed the status of the economic importance of pests and diseases in wetland rice
production from low to high. Integrated Pest Management in wetland rice production,
therefore, has been popularized to minimize the harmful effect of excessive use of
pesticides on wetland rice production and on the environment
xi) Socio-economic Factors
The success of wetland rice production, as that of the production of other crops, depends
greatly on the existence of viable credit facilities and systems for purchasing seeds, inputs,
equipment. Also, the access to markets for the purchase of inputs as well as to sell the
produces and the competition for time and resources stemming different production
activities are often factors determining farmers' choice on crops to be planted, crop
cultivation practices and crop rotation. Farming practices and their quality depend greatly
on farmers' knowledge on wetland rice cultivation, while the rice production technologies
available to farmers depend on the level of research and extension services in the
concerned location/country.

Abstract:
Every political dispensation in recent decades has taken the view that the country has to
be able to feed itself. For the country’s political leaders and the agriculture bureaucracy,
this has meant that rice, the country’s staple food, has to be locally produced at quantity
sufficient to meet the rice requirement of the burgeoning population. Indeed, rice self-
sufficiency has been an objective enshrined in all government programs for the
agricultural sector since the early 1960s. To achieve the objective, the Government has
intervened, albeit in varying degrees, in the marketplace to affect virtually all segments of
the supply chain, including importation, and of the demand spectrum. Yet, self-sufficiency
has remained elusive. The population is far from being more food-secure now than a
decade or two ago. Over the years, rice has become more expensive in the Philippines
than in most developing countries of Asia. This has caused reduction in the purchasing
power of the incomes of the poor, including landless farmers and urban poor workers
whose spending on rice constitutes about 22% of their total household expenditure.
Arguably, this could partly explain for the much higher incidence of absolute poverty in
the Philippines than in Indonesia, Thailand, and even Vietnam. What has gone wrong? In
 this paper, we examine the performance of the rice sector over the last three decades.
Our aim is to identify policy imperatives and investment options for the sector in the wake
of globalization and population pressure. While a number of observations found in the
paper are not new and have already been pointed out elsewhere, we move beyond the
usual description of past performance to include as well an ex-ante assessment of the
effects of trade policy reforms on the rice economy in the short and medium terms.

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/46447037_The_rice_problem_in_the_Philippine
s_trends_constraints_and_policy_imperatives

Sources:

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/46447037_The_rice_problem_in_the_Philippines_trends_co
nstraints_and_policy_imperatives

http://www.fao.org/3/x6611e/x6611e03c.htm