Vietnam is the only country in the humid tropics in Asia where the rate of hybrid rice adoption has been growing. What are the distinct factors responsible for this unique development in hybrid rice R and D in Vietnam - which has similar agro ecological, political, socio-economic and institutional features as China? Would hybrid rice adoption be sustained in the long run in Vietnam? This paper reviews the development of hybrid rice in the country in the context of the development of the overall rice economy. It reports the findings of a sample farm household survey on the profitability of cultivating hybrid rice over the inbred high-yielding varieties.
