There is an urgent need to increase the genetic yield potential of rice since past
yield increases have been negated by unabated population growth and reduction in rice
hcctarage in many countries including the Philippines. Molecular marker technology
promises to speed up and improve the overall efficiency of plant breeding and, hence,
the attainment of higher yield potential. This paper describes effoi1s at Phil Rice to use
molecular marker-aided approaches for breeding direct-seeded and hybrid rice varieties,
considered 'new frontier' varietal types for the next millennium.