As calls for a ‘uniquely African green revolution’ gain momentum, a focus on seeds and seed systems is rising up the agricultural policy agenda. Much of the debate stresses the technological or market dimensions, with substantial investments being made in seed improvement and the development of both public and private sector delivery systems. But this misses out the political economy of policy processes behind this agenda: who wins, who loses, and whose interests are being served?

Drawing on lessons from country case studies from Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi and Zimbabwe, as well as insights from a set of complementary studies of cross-cutting themes, this article assesses the evolution of seed system research and development programmes and processes across the region. By examining how the contrasting politics and different configurations of interests affect the way cereal seed systems operate, it highlights opportunities for reshaping the terms of the debate and opening up alternative pathways to more sustainable and socially just seed...

The Government of Ethiopia’s (GoE’s) economic growth strategy, Agriculture Development Led Industrialization (ADLI, formulated in 1991), places very high priority on accelerating agricultural growth and achieving food security. Agriculture is also a main focus of the current GoE’s Growth and Transformation Plan, as was also the case for its predecessors. The effort to modernise the […]

Rural household economies dependent on rainfed agriculture are increasingly turning to irrigation technology solutions to reduce the effects of weather variability and guard against inconsistent and low crop output. Organisations are increasingly using market-based approaches to disseminate technologies to smallholder farmers; and, although women are among their targeted group, little is known of the extent […]

There is a great potential for increasing the production of rice in Tanzania, Zambia and Malawi. Many of the constraints on rice production are similar for the three countries. Common problems are low quality of seeds, lack of access to inputs, poorly functioning irrigation schemes, poor soil fertility management, weed infestation, low yields and low […]

Through the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition, in 2013 G8 countries are seeking to mobilise the private sector and multi-national corporations to boost African agriculture. This new Future Agricultures / PLAAS briefing (pdf) looks at how African countries are engaging with the New Alliance. The authors argue that large-scale acquisitions of land for […]

The current research and extension system in Tanzania is mainly public funded, although decentralizing and rightsizing the research establishment have relieved the government’s budget strain through complete privatization of major cash crops. Decentralization has put extension under local government authorities to enhance greater client participation in Technology Development and Transfer (TDT) and making these processes […]

Working Paper 33 Political Economy of Cereal Seed Systems in Africa project by Hannington Odame and Elijah MuangeDecember 2011 Public and private actors and their networks are committing substantial resources to support agro-dealers to deliver novel technologies and information in line with the New Green Revolution for Africa. The main point of entry has been […]

Working Paper 36by Dawit Alemu At the advent of Ethiopia’s new economic development plan, the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP) 2010 – 2015, the Farmer-Based Seed Multiplication (FBSM) programme has increased hopes in the strengthening of the country’s national seed system. Although FBSM engages in various strategies and numerous actors across Ethiopia (Dawit and Spielman […]

Policy Brief 46 This FAC Policy Brief examines the political economy of input programmes and identifies maize and input subsidies as central to agricultural political debates. Subsidy programmes that are centred on the supply of seed and fertiliser to support maize production to boost national food security have created a strong actor network including key […]

Policy Brief 45 In a bid to return the country to food self-sufficiency, the Government of Kenya has been spearheading strategies for a new ‘Green Revolution’ in the food producing sector, as spelt out in its Strategy for Revitalizing Agriculture (SRA), a ten-year action plan launched in 2004. The SRA is entrenched in Kenya’s Vision […]