AGRA’s Program - Food and Agriculture Organization Seed Systems... · AGRA’s Program for Africa’s Seed Systems (PASS): Strengthening Public Crop Genetic Improvement and Private

AGRA’s Program

for Africa’s Seed

Systems (PASS):

Strengthening Public

Crop Genetic

Improvement and

Private Input Supply

Across Africa

Evolution of seed work from 2002 - 2012

• 1998-2002: Period of enquiry; diagnostic surveys

• 2002-2005: Construction of a model

• 2005-2006: Raising funds for expansion

• 2007-2011: PASS Phase I: Scaling up, implementation,

tweaking

• 2013 – Future: Phase Phase II: Validation, broad (continent-

wide) application?

• Recently selected by the G8 to coordinate a “Scaling Seed and

Other Related Technologies” in six countries

First, though, some really good news…

4 PASS Guiding Principals

Principal No. 1: “No Improved Seed, No Green Revolution”

0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

1400

1600

1800

2000

Local Variety,No Fertilizer

Local VarietyPlus Fertilizer

Hybrid Variety,No Fertilizer

Hybrid VarietyPlus Fertilizer

838.125

1271.25 1215

1935

Kg

Mai

ze G

rain

pe

r H

a

Effect on Maize Yields Among Smallholder Farmers in Western Kenya from Adoption of Improved Seed and Fertilizer, 1997-2007

• Diverse agro-ecologies

• A diversity of crops

• Rain-fed systems

• Segmented political landscape

Principal No. 2: “Africa is Vast and Diverse. Strategies for Crop Improvement and Seed Supply Must Embrace

this Reality”

Principal No. 3: “We Need to Build a Private, African Seed Industry.”

1935–2000: Yields reach 9 mt/ha

1865–1935: Yields stuck at 1.5 mt/ha

Start of adoption of hybrid seed

Principal No. 4: “Farmers Everywhere Want and Need Improved Seed”

On the left, a local land race maize variety. On the right, new, hybrid maize variety developed by the Int’l. Maize and Wheat Improvement Ctr. Sotuba, Mali September, 2008.

An Example: Demonstrating the Benefits of Improved, Adapted Seed in Mali

Benefits of Improved, Adapted Sorghum Seed In Mali

Left, a local land race variety. Right, new, hybrid sorghum variety developed by l’Institut de l’Economie Rurale. Djalakoroba, Mali October, 2009.

Improved sorghum hybrid in farmer’s field. Burkina Faso, October, 2009

Benefits of Improved, Adapted Rice Seed In Burkina Faso

In the foreground, local land race of upland rice. In the background, Nerica.

Benefits of Improved, Adapted Bean Seed In Rwanda

In the foreground, improved variety. In the center, local bean

Benefits of Improved, Adapted Peanut Seed in Uganda

On the left, Improved Variety From NARO

On the right, Farmer’s Variety

The PASS Improved Seed Value Chain

Training Breeders

• M.Sc. & Ph.D. fellowships

• In-country research on relevant topics

Breeding New Varieties

• Farmer-participatory

• Regulatory > Release > Promotion

Seed Enterprises

• Start-up grants

• Business Development Services

• Equity Funds

Agro-dealer Networks

• Business Training

• Credit guarantees

• Private extension

R & D Delivery

Results To-Date

MSc, PhD Crop Science Students Enrolled

0

50

100

150

200

250

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

42

56

74

92

109

138

5

26

80

139

175

217

No

. o

f S

tud

en

ts E

nro

lle

d

PhD Enrolled MSc Enrolled

MSc, PhD Crop Science Students Graduated

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

6

14

19

26

36

42

56

0 0 4

14

52

99

PhD Graduated Msc Graduated

14 PhDs

Varieties Released & Commercialized by Year (2007-2012)

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

24 32

91

163

333

418

18 25

74

142

163

222

251

Released Commercialized

29 Varieties

Quantity of Seed Produced, MT (2007-2012)

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

2,346 5,663

9,748

25,844

40,437

57,391

Qu

anti

ty o

f Se

ed

(M

T)

What Does 57,000 MT of Improved Seed Do for Africa?

• Plants 2.85 million hectares of farmland

• Catalyzes production of 5.7 million MT additional food…

• Which feeds 33.5 million additional people

PASS Certified Seed Production Trend

5,663.5 9,748.5

25,884.5

40,437.4

57,391.7

2346.3 3,597.8

8,305.1

16,018.9

25,823.8

46,380.7

2,065.7;(19 S.E) 1,443.3; (10 S.E)

9,865.6; (6 S.E)

15,717.1; (24 S.E)

11,011; (19 S.E)

0

10,000

20,000

30,000

40,000

50,000

60,000

70,000

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

Annual Seed Production

Existing Seed enterprises

New Seed Enterprises

(S.E-Seed Enterprises)

Seed Production by Crop, 2012

Maize: 29,773.6, 52%

Rice: 9583.4, 17%

Wheat: 5378, 9%

Sorghum, 3256.1, 6%

Soya, 2842.2, 5%

Beans , 1734.5, 3%

Others, 1209.2, 2%

Millet, 1113.1, 2%

Groundnut, 875.4, 2% Cowpea, 671.8, 1%

Sunflower, 395.5, 1%

Teff, 141.5, 0%

Sesame, 136.6, 0%

Pigeonpea, 122, 0%

2012 Certified Seed Production in Selected Countries

Agro dealers Trained and Certified (2007-2012)

0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

14000

16000

2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012

331

2634

7601

9339

13859 14098

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4

• No original breeding

• No formal variety release process

• No private seed companies

• No/Very few agro-dealers

• No outside seed investors.

• Limited farmer awareness of improved seed

• Some original breeding

• Few small/med. seed companies

• Var. release formalized

• Growing agro-dealer network

• Evolving seed policy environment

• Early stage outside investors

• Strong breeding systems

• Many small seed companies

• Significant policy issues, esp. foundation seed policies, preventing further growth

• Outside investors showing reluctance

• Robust breeding pipeline

• Multiple stable seed companies

• Strong interest from outside investors

• Favorable seed policies

• Hi farmer awareness

South Sudan Liberia Sierra Leone

Niger Mozambique Rwanda Mali

Burkina Faso Ghana Ethiopia Tanzania Nigeria

Uganda Zambia Kenya Malawi

PASS Seed Systems Stages of Development

The 5 Innovations That Made the Difference:

1. We transferred ownership of the inventive step to local institutions

The 5 Innovations That Made the Difference:

2. We approached input supply for smallholder farmers as a business

The 5 Innovations That Made the Difference:

3. We taught African seed companies how to produce high quality, hybrid seed

The 5 Innovations That Made the Difference:

4. We made local farmers aware of improved seed

The 5 Innovations That Made the Difference:

5. We built seed marketing chains where farmers live

Thank You