Rice is one of the strategic and priority cereals for food security. However, its production is constrained by the availability of water resources. Thus, the objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of drip irrigation on the agronomic performance of six rice varieties. Thus, rainfed and irrigated rice varieties were evaluated at Bama under drip irrigation in a three-repeat alpha lattice design. Observations and measurements were made on phenology, growth parameters, yield components and productivity parameters. The irrigated varieties showed a higher tillering ability/m² (1005 tillers) and a higher number of panicles/m² (711 panicles) than the rainfed varieties, which produced 521 tillers and 392 panicles respectively. The irrigated varieties also showed highest average grain yield and highest average water productivity, with more than 12 t/ha and 25 kg of rice produced per 1 m3 of water consumed, respectively. Drip irrigation thus had a very significant effect on increasing grain yield. Good irrigation management could therefore allow better production and support local consumption.

: irrigated rice, rice, cereal, Burkina Fasp