Almost nine million euros for improving seed systems in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa

Nine projects are granted by NWO-WOTRO Science for Global Development to strengthen the Netherlands-CGIAR research partnership on generating insights that contribute to improving seed systems in focus regions within Asia and Sub-Sahara Africa.

 

The call on ‘Seed Systems Development: Enabling and Scaling Genetic Improvement and Propagation Materials’ was released by the Netherlands-CGIAR partnership. The nine awarded project consortia consist of Dutch research institutes, CGIAR research centers (through CGIAR research programmes or platforms), and (local) partners from the public and private sector. Specific seed systems addressed are cassava, maize, groundnut, vegetables, cocoa, forage seed, tilapia and chicken, while some projects have a more general focus on improving the functioning and inclusiveness of seed systems and (actors in) markets.
 

Aim of the research projects
 

The call for proposals was built on the premise that development of the seed sector may benefit from research collaboration between practitioners and research institutions from CGIAR, the Netherlands and selected partner countries. With the funded projects, new insights and innovative solutions should evolve from synthesising academic expertise, farmers’ experiences and knowledge, as well as the practical knowledge of companies and NGOs working within the seed sector and its value chains.
 

Specific objectives of this call were:
 

• To gain insights in how to increase the contribution of high-quality ‘seed’ in improving smallholder farmers’ food and income security;

• To identify and test how to contribute to improving availability and access of high-quality ‘seed’ for smallholder and family farms, especially sooner and at a larger scale than in current practice;

• To identify and test how to make value chains for private and public seed and animal seed stock more efficient, sustainable and anchored in a supportive enabling environment;

• To strengthen cooperation among CGIAR researchers affiliated to CRPs and/or Platforms, Dutch researchers and relevant (local) public and private partners.

Granted projects
 

Main applicant: Dr H. Affognon (International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT))

This project aims to sustainably improve the groundnut seed systems for the upscaling of improved groundnut varieties for improving the income and nutrition in Ghana and Mali by adopting an innovative seed systems model that integrates the formal and informal channels to enhance seed production and marketing.

Main Applicant: Dr J. van Etten (Bioversity International)

This project aims to develop a farmer-led business model for the propagation and distribution of cocoa planting material that is more efficient and more responsive to climate change, and capable of providing rapid feedback to breeders in Ghana. The proposal attempts to achieve this based on citizen science, using the tricot approach that has been tested in cereals and legumes and is for the first time being tested in a perennial tree crop. 

Main Applicant: Dr P.R. Gildemacher (Royal Tropical Institute (KIT))

The aim of this project is to develop viable business models for forage seed production and marketing that assure economically sustainable access to high quality forage seed to diverse clients in Kenya and Uganda.

‘Integrated vegetable seed systems development in ethnic minority communities in Northern Vietnam for enhanced nutrition and income security’

Main applicant: Dr S. De Haan (International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT))

This project aims to address issues related to vegetable smallholder seed systems in Northern Vietnam. Issues mentioned in the proposal are identified as inadequate access to quality seed of exogenous and indigenous vegetables varieties of desirable uniformity, health, and physiological properties, and traits such as disease resistance, micronutrient density, and consumer characters.

‘Promoting stress-tolerant varieties at scale: Interlinking the private seed sector and insurance advisory services in Kenya’

Main applicant: Dr B. Kramer (International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI))

This project aims to investigate how different types of market actors in high-quality seed systems can promote their clients’ adaptive capacity by interlinking stress-tolerant varieties with innovative financial and advisory services that help resolve key barriers to adoption, targeting particularly female farmers and youths in Kenya.

‘Women in business: chicken seed dissemination in Ethiopia and Tanzania’

Main applicant: Dr A. Omore (International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI))

This project aims to develop, promote and test women-led chicken businesses in Ethiopia and Tanzania with the goal of promoting the economic empowerment of young women, and also of improving the food and nutrition security of their households.

‘Accelerating aquaculture development in Ghana through sustainable Nile Tilapia seed production and dissemination’

Main applicant: Dr C.R. Ragasa (International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI))

This project aims to build on the successes in Ghana’s tilapia cage culture and to accelerate tilapia development through testing interventions to improve the seed system for small-scale cage and pond farmers.

‘Policy and regulatory reform options for seed market development: Expanding the empirical evidence base in Uganda’

Main applicant: Dr R.A. Sparrow (Wageningen University and Research (WUR))

This project aims to improve the functioning, integration, and inclusiveness of seed systems and markets in Uganda by strengthening links between the regulatory framework, seed providers, and seed users across multiple dimensions.

‘Enabling agribusiness development for scaling quality cassava seed systems for control of major viral diseases in Rwanda and Burundi’

Main Applicant: Dr S. Tumwegamire (International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA))

This project aims to engage in testing, evaluating and upscaling end-user-preferred cassava varieties with strong resistance to Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD) and Cassava Mosaic Diseases (CMD) through different types of cassava agribusiness seed systems (CASS) models in Rwanda and Burundi.

The Netherlands - CGIAR research programme

The Netherlands - CGIAR research programme contributes to transformational change in agriculture around the world by advancing food system knowledge and joint public and private innovation. From 2017-2021, this programme is part of a cooperation agreement between the government of the Netherlands and the CGIAR System Organization. The call is one of the four instruments that are implemented by NWO-WOTRO Science for Global Development.