The session examined how Africa can move from individual seed-sector projects toward well-financed, nationally coordinated and market-responsive seed systems. The starting point was that quality seed underpins several objectives simultaneously: climate resilience, agricultural productivity, improved nutrition, farmer incomes and rural employment. Yet investment gaps, fragmented coordination and insufficient private-sector participation continue to prevent improved and locally adapted varieties from reaching farmers at scale.
A major focus was the use of Seed Sector Investment Plans to translate evidence on seed-system weaknesses into coordinated public and private investment.
A major focus was the use of Seed Sector Investment Plans to translate evidence on seed-system weaknesses into coordinated public and private investment.
The first panel, “Seed Sector Investment Plans and National Planning: Mobilising Public and Private Investment,” stressed that investment plans need to cover the whole seed value chain—from breeding and early-generation seed through multiplication, certification, distribution and markets. Governments have a key role in creating an enabling policy and regulatory environment, while private companies provide investment, innovation, multiplication and commercialization.
The second panel, “Strategic Partnerships for Strengthening Market-Responsive Seed Systems,” shifted attention from seed supply to farmer demand and markets. A central message was that farmers will invest in improved seed when farming is profitable; seed-system development therefore needs stronger links with processors, traders, food value chains and regional markets. This is particularly important for nutritious and climate-resilient crops. Country Manager of HarvestPlus Solutions Nigeria, for example, discussed how biofortified crop seed systems can attract private investment while strengthening nutrition-sensitive and resilient agrifood systems.
The strongest overall conclusion was that seed systems cannot be treated as an isolated agricultural input issue. They have to connect research and breeding with early-generation seed, seed enterprises, finance, regulation, extension, farmers and ultimately profitable markets. This also explains the session's three-part framing: better seed systems contribute to resilience through climate-adapted varieties, nutrition through diverse and biofortified crops, and jobs through seed production, multiplication, distribution, processing and expanding agricultural value chains. (LinkedIn)
The second panel, “Strategic Partnerships for Strengthening Market-Responsive Seed Systems,” shifted attention from seed supply to farmer demand and markets. A central message was that farmers will invest in improved seed when farming is profitable; seed-system development therefore needs stronger links with processors, traders, food value chains and regional markets. This is particularly important for nutritious and climate-resilient crops. Country Manager of HarvestPlus Solutions Nigeria, for example, discussed how biofortified crop seed systems can attract private investment while strengthening nutrition-sensitive and resilient agrifood systems.
- Evelyn Lusenaka — Director, CESSA/AGRA; keynote/remarks and leadership perspective on strengthening African seed systems.
- Boaz Blackie Keizire — moderator of the session on Seed Sector Investment Plans and National Planning.
- Dr Rufaro Madakadze — Lead, Capacity Building & Technical Support, CESSA/AGRA; moderator of the market-responsive seed-systems panel and contributor to the concluding discussion.
- Enock Chikava — Gates Foundation; remarks on investment and the role of partnerships in strengthening African agricultural and seed systems.
- Dr Jean Claude Rubyogo — Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT; perspective linking agricultural research, improved varieties and delivery through functioning seed systems.
- Dr Yusuf Dollah Fou'ad — Country Manager, HarvestPlus Solutions Nigeria; contribution on biofortified seeds, private-sector investment and nutrition-sensitive seed systems
- Samuel Angwenyi — CESSA/AGRA; contributor to the session and concluding discussions.
- Lauren Good — Gates Foundation; contributor to the discussion on investment and partnerships.
- Jonathan Said — AGRA; contributor to the session's concluding discussion on investment and food-system transformation.
The strongest overall conclusion was that seed systems cannot be treated as an isolated agricultural input issue. They have to connect research and breeding with early-generation seed, seed enterprises, finance, regulation, extension, farmers and ultimately profitable markets. This also explains the session's three-part framing: better seed systems contribute to resilience through climate-adapted varieties, nutrition through diverse and biofortified crops, and jobs through seed production, multiplication, distribution, processing and expanding agricultural value chains. (LinkedIn)
Related:
31 August 2026. Pathways to Scale: Where Nutritious Climate-Smart Seed Systems, Institutional Demand, and Investment Converge for Sustainability
At this breakthrough event, HarvestPlus Solutions (HPS) and partners brought together government, private sector, finance, research, and farmer representatives to explore how Africa can move beyond donor-driven pilots toward locally owned, market-driven food systems that deliver sustained impact at scale.
- Event Moderator: Donald Mavindidze – Senior Program Officer, Gates Foundation
- Keynote Speaker: Simon Winter – Vice President, Reimagining Humanitarian Nutrition Security at the Rockefeller Foundation Catalytic Capital
- Evelyn Lusenaka – Director of the Center of Excellence for Seed Systems Africa at AGRA
- Ibitoye Oyewale – MD/CEO Premier Seeds Nigeria Ltd.
- Nelson Munyaka – Zimbabwe Super Seeds
- Yusuf Dollah – Country Manager, HarvestPlus Solutions, Nigeria
- Peter Owoko – Policy Expert, The State Department of Agriculture, Kenya
- Tanner Roark – Senior Technical Advisor at World Vision
- Rewa Misra – Head of National Policy and Innovative Finance, HarvestPlus
- Abebe Chekol – Deputy Director, Country Policy Advocacy and Communications, and Economic Opportunities, Ethiopia, Gates Foundation
Related:
The 27th Annual African Seed Trade Association (AfSTA) Congress will take place from March 16–18, 2027 at the Edge Convention Centre in Nairobi, Kenya.
Co-hosted by the Seed Trade Association of Kenya (STAK), this premier agricultural event is anticipated to draw more than 600 delegates, bringing together private seed companies, national seed trade groups, and top agricultural research centers from across the globe.
The congress serves as a vital platform for defending the interests of the African seed industry, promoting variety turnover, and advancing trade.
Key areas of focus for the 2027 sessions include:
- Technological Innovation: Exploring emerging seed tracing, traceability technologies, and climate-smart agricultural systems.
- Market Access & Trade Harmonization: Standardizing regional trade policies to facilitate easier seed distribution across African borders.Biotechnology & Intellectual Property: Advancing policy dialogues around plant variety protection, biosafety awareness, and breeding innovations.
- Institutional Strengthening: Enhancing strategic coordination between national bodies and the international private sector
Related:
8 - 10 September. The Africa Vegetable Breeding Consortium (AVBC) Annual Workshop, hosted by World Vegetable Center in collaboration with African Seed Trade Association (AfSTA), was organised in Cotonou, bringing together key stakeholders to advance innovation and collaboration in Africa’s vegetable seed sector.The participants visited demonstration plots, and had one-on-one meetings between breeders, seed companies, and the producers attending the event. These interactions were designed to better align the needs on the ground, the expectations of the seed sector, and the latest research findings.
The Africa Vegetable Breeding Consortium (AVBC) is a joint initiative of African Seed Trade Association (AfSTA) and the World Vegetable Center.
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