KNOWLEDGE FOR LIFE

development projects

Farming is incredibly important to Africa, both in terms of food security and income. Farmers need for good quality seeds that are resistant to local pests and diseases is paramount to helping them produce a good amount of quality crops.

so what’s the problem?Traditional seed production and storage methods in humid tropical regions do not have temperature and moisture control, resulting in their rapid deterioration. Along with collaborating institutions and partners, this project will demonstrate and implement a novel way to dry and store seeds that can dramatically improve seed quality and longevity for smallholders in tropical climates.

what is this project doing?This comprehensive project will disseminate a novel, economical and appropriate technology that will improve seed quality and enhance the horticultural value chain.

providing a better way to store seeds

locationsNepal, Bangladesh, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, India, Thailand and USA

date2012 – 2014

project teamNoah Phiri Daniel Karanja Richard Musebe Duncan Chacha Roger Day

The project is:

• organizing an international workshop to publicize the availability of drying beads, gain additional local cooperators, explore other ways to conserve the genetic material and investigate the horticultural value chain

• conducting socio-economic and technical analyses of the horticultural seed production, distribution and marketing value chain in order to identify critical points where seed quality is at risk

• providing a Technology Support Package and on-site advice to assist cooperators to establish improved seed production, storage and utilization procedures in their own operations or among the stakeholders with whom they work

• establishing sustainable, market-based systems to enable local adoption of improved seed production, handling, storage and distribution procedures

• building local technical capacity through extension educational programs focusing on producing and maintaining high seed quality

• targeting female stakeholders, as they represent the majority of workers engaged in horticultural seed production, preservation and utilization.

results so farA workshop demonstrating the seed drying technology was held in Nairobi and people attended from Kenya, Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania, and Zambia, generating a lot of interest among participants.

A socioeconomic survey is in progress assessing the horticultural seed production, distribution and marketing value chain. Ceramic beads to dry the seeds are on their way to demonstration trials in Kenya and Tanzania, and to a small extent in Rwanda and Uganda.

contactCABI, ICRAF Complex, United Nations Avenue, Gigiri, PO Box 633-00621, Nairobi, Kenya T: +254 20 72 24450 F: +254 20 71 22150 E: africa@cabi.org www.cabi.org/africa

www.cabi.org/hortcrspID

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Noah Phiri, Project Manager

sponsorsHorticulture Collaborative Research Support Program (Horticulture CRSP), USAID