Seed stakeholders demand CBN source for anchor rice farming

NASC

·         SEDAN should emphasis on rural transfer than opposing community seeds production

·         National assembly wants total autonomy for NASC

          Farmers, law makers want NARIs more funding

The stakeholders at the value chain of certified seeds production have frown at the source of certified seeds the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) procured for its anchore rice farming programme at Kebbi and other states just as  people have disagreed with the stance of Seed Companies of Nigeria (SEDAN) on community seed production saying each should speak for itself through quality and extension of market frontiers to rural farmer.

Also the passing to the second reading of the bill asking for an act to empower National Agricultural Seeds Council (NASC) for better performance is a pointer to the determination of the National assembly members to ensure autonomy of the council from the apron of the Federal ministry of agriculture as they argued the agency must be allowed to function independently. Also the farmers’ association has demanded more funding for the Agricultural Research Institutes (NARIs).

At the recently organized workshop on developing a rapid action plan for quality seed production and presentation of the Alliance for a seed industry in West Africa (ASIWA) in Nigeria, all the participants queried the source of the seeds procured by the CBN for the anchor programme for rice farming  inKebbi and other states saying the process has contravened the certification mandate of NASC in relation to federal government agricultural project with any partner.

No official of NASC, the organizer of the workshop could make a case for the certification of the seed procured whether they are quality ones or not, a situation many participants condemned and seen as great omission by CBN saying this was a gradual return of the old practice that was full of corruption.

The issue of integrating informal community seed based production into formal sector through proper organization to ensuring quality and certification met diverse opinions. While many believed that the inability of SEDAN to ensure rural availability of improved quality inputs  to  farmers has created demand- supply gap that allowed the use of grains and adulteration that must be bridged for better farming development as part of rapid action plan for 2016 as SEDAN was of the opposite view saying government was indirectly telling them to close shops after they had met all registration requirement, stressed anybody that is interested in certified seed production must have all the necessary criteria without discrimination.

 Many stakeholders posited that the seed companies must not envision the introduction of the community based seed model as being a rivalry affair but rather as a vehicle to expand their marketing structure that can be engaged as out growers. 

But obviously the stance of  SEDAN  was that community based seed production must follow the earlier decision which stated they must produce only those certified seeds the registered companies cannot produced adding anything short of this was a sabotage to the development of the sub sector that still needed to be supported by the government with more friendly sector environment creation.

According to the President of SEDAN, Mr. Richard Olafare who said anybody that want to come into certified seeds production would be very welcome, but they must go through similar process of registration by NASC. Asking any community seed based informal group to be selling same products of our members into the same environment was as good as telling registered companies to close shop which may not be fair to us and to the system development.

Another group who preferred anonymity said SEDAN cannot be taken serious by speaking against the introduction of efficient system that would close a gap created by them to the grassroots as they queried  how many of these companies have got the necessary capacity to ensure effective production and marketing to the rural farmers.

They pointed that people pushing for community seed production was as a result of failure on the part of SEDAN to prevent adulteration and ensure marketing structure to the rural areas saying each company should speak for itself in term of quality service delivery rather than hiding under an association in order to deprive millions of rural farmers access to improved seeds varieties that can face climate challenges of drought and heat.

“ How many of them have efficient structure to meet the  commercial agricultural improved seeds demand and supply especially in the face of climate change challenges where  a hybrid seed with drought and heat resilience is more required than Open Pollinated Varieties (OPV)” said one of this group members.

It was further observed that the issue of intellectual property right has been hindering development of the certified seed sector of agriculture in Nigeria as many multinational companies that have the where- withal to invest in this sub sector’s economy were skeptical due to lack of law that will protect their research investment. 

They argued that putting intellectual property right in place would encourage owners to leave their germplasm varieties for multiplication as it was a paid research work that cannot be released free without compensation coupled that doing this would enhance private sector investment in research and competiveness among the companies for better qualities towards expanding the market choices and job creation through commercial agriculture.

Also the Honorable member at the meeting Alhaji Baba Nunir Danagundi who wanted total autonomy for NASC  pointed that the council must be empowered to perform its function to capacity, stressed the present structure without board committee cum the main ministry of agriculture’s over crowded authority on NASc cannot help the development of the sector. 

Hon. Baba Nunir who made a positive case for the continuity of the Growth Enhancement Support (GES) of the past administration through electronic wallet pointed the policy must be entrenched into our agricultural policy through legislation pointing effort is already in this direction as an area that need to be improved upon adding that Nigeria Agricultural Research Institutes (NARIs) going into certified seed production would  concentrate on breeders’ seed production just as they would be depriving the real private sector of the production rights.

The lawmaker pointed that the breeders’ performance in the NARIs are going down due to low funding thereby advised for upscaling financial support for Research Institutes so as to enable them to concentrate on more research work that would enhance the commercial agriculture through provision of improved and high yielding technologies for the off takers for commercialization.

As part of effort to repositioning the sub sector to better effective functioning of seed economy, the National assembly has passed the second reading of the bill asking for a better NASC performance act towards regulation and monitoring. This bill is presented by Hon. Baba MunirDanagundi from Kano at the lower house and it already receiving attention towards ensuring achievement of commercial agriculture using improved quality seeds by the time is finally signed by President MohammuduBuhari. 

Senator SabiAbdulahi of upper chamber of the National Assembly and All Farmers Association of Nigeria (AFAN) representative, Dr. Tunde Arosanya were agreed in though as they both advocated for the need to integrate rural farmers into any issue relating to improve usage of certified seeds, being a very strategic end users in the whole economic system.

Sen.Abdullahi who advocated for integration of informal sector of seed production towards actualization of formal said that rural farmers must be totally involved in any matter pertaining to quality and improved technology of both animal and crops saying“there is need for more approach to bring in farmers into active seed policy”

In the same vein, AFAN representative, Dr. Tunde Arosanya advocated that more funding should be given to NARIs so as to be able to make available hybrid crops and animals varieties that have resistant to drought and heat occasioned by vagaries of climate change towards ensuring food security.

However the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Chief Audu Ogbeh’s speech on the occasion pondered on the high increase in the use of grains regarded as seeds pointing that the demand and supply shortages have created the opportunity for adulteration stressed the situation must be jettisoned for better development of the sub sector.

Chief Audu Ogbeh pointed that the supply gap created in the 2015 was huge than what was made available as the demand for the running year in about three food crops  doubled the last year’s thereby emphasizing for better re-positioning of the sector.

According to the minister “First it is worth noting that the estimated annual seed demand in Nigeria for 2016 is about 350,000 metric tones for rice, maize and sorghum with an approximate seed industry value of N112 Billion ($564 Million). The 2015 annual production was about 122,000 MT valued at N43 Billion ($216) this, effectively translates into a supply-demand gap of about N231,000MT valued at N81 Billion ($409 Million). Presently, the gap is filled through massive use of low quality seeds, such as farmers saved seed and supplies from unscrupulous seed merchants. In this regard, Nigeria needs a seed industry revolution” 

“We need to innovate in addressing the various challenges of the seed value chain, take stock of how best to ramp up production, and create the necessary institutional structures to ensure a well regulated seed industry in the country. This becomes very important and crucial if we must achieve the Ministry’s targeted actions to attain self- sufficiency in our local staples. Our target is achieving self-sufficiency within the next 36 months in rice, sorghum, maize, soya beans and wheat. This will help us to achieve import substitution and, significantly stabilize as well as reduce the high import bill currently being generated on food items to the barest minimum”

The Director Genenral (DG), NASC, Dr. SegunOjo corroborating the shortage supplies of certified seeds in 2015 by the minister of agriculture said that holistic effort must be concertedly taken by stakeholders to overcome using ASIWA model.

NASC DG, Dr. Ojo said that “ Our role as seed industry stakeholders is very crucial because it is the fulcrum for the achievement of the national seed requirement that currently stand at over 350,000 MT of which only about 123,000 MT is available as at 2015. This means that we must now double our already doubled efforts if we are to achieve this target. It means this is a time for a quadruple effort. As we gather here for planning a sectoral change for the Nigerian seed sector the question most of us need to answer is “ how will I make a meaningful contribution to ensure that only high quality seeds is deployed for farmers’ use in Nigeria in 2016 and beyond. 

This question comes at the relevant time because it is usually at the beginning that many people, organizations, companies etc come up with  strategic plans. The National Seed System is no different and it is precisely for this reason (i.e strategic planning) that we are gathered here today. This workshop will also present to stakeholders the Alliance  for Seed industry in West Africa (ASIWA) for understanding and buy in. ASIWA is platform aimed to promote the sharing of experience, pooling of resources and creation of fruitful synergies between stakeholders of the seed sector”