Castor seeds import: Stakeholders protest ‘Raw Materials’ breach of protocol

Cross section

Two research institutes and other stakeholders have protested the breach of protocol on the importation of castor seeds into the country by the Raw Materials Research & Development Council (RMRDC), and this has led to the setup of a committee to harmonize all the differing observations. All these happened at the recently-held presentation ceremony of hybrid castor seeds to farmers from Kebbi state, in Abuja.

The stakeholders vehemently opposed the process of the imported seeds saying RMRDC had breached the varieties protocol by not passing through the National Committee on Naming Registration and Release of Crops Varieties domiciled at National Centre for Genetic Resources and Biotechnology (NACGRAB), Moor plantation, Ibadan where research and science experts normally subject all improved seeds to unbiased evaluation and scientific scrutiny before they can be commercially released into the markets for farmers.

The Institute for Agricultural Research (IAR), Samaru, Zaria’s representative, Dr. A. Usman said as far as the seed in context was concerned, it was just an accession because it had not passed through the normal release process in Nigeria.

He said this is breach of seeds protocol in Nigeria, asking, “How can Raw Materials embark on seeds import without following due process by getting the mandate research institutes involved for the sake of farmers who may not have the prerequisite knowledge of how to effectively evaluate the right characters of an improved seeds?”

He observed further, “we must always do the right things for the purpose of the poor farmers. 

These seeds, as far we are concerned, is an accession because it has no variety name and it cannot be commercialized in Nigeria because it has not passed through the registration process at national varieties release committee at NACRAB, Ibadan”, adding that his institute had more than 45 accessions is already working on which were yet to be presented at the national release committee hoping by 2019 two of them would be presented for registration and commercial release.

He noted that a process like this could put farmers in a very serious danger because the trial process are the duty of the mandate research institutes who have the scientific capacity to handle best agronomic practice and potency of any accession across many ecologies in the countries before it can be registered and released into the market.

Also, the National Cereals Research Institute (NCRI) Badeggi, Niger state’ s  representative, Dr. Andrew Gana said both research institutes whose mandate was on castor have done a lot of work on it pointed out that fund limitation was a great challenge to progress that would have been made “... Let us establish our relationship with the research Institutes that can give approval to any accession before bringing them into the country. Materials must be evaluated in all ecological zones by scientists even if Nigeria and India has the same climate condition’’

The National Vice President, Castor (North) Mr. Samson Polit expressed disappointment on the whole ceremony saying “I am not encouraged. How can farmers be invited to an event that they are not properly briefed and strategic research agencies of same Nigerian government that supposed to put farmers right in terms of best agronomics practices are not harmonized in the procurement of certified seeds”

In the speech read on behalf of the Director General of RMRDC, Dr. Hussaini Ibrahim said that his council was passionate about galvanizing the development of castor through supply of three castor seeds varieties from India saying that “this initiative, aimed at promoting the development of the castor value chain is based on the relationship between Farm Tech Biogene PVT LTD, India and RMRDC. In line with agreement reached with the company and based on the advice and experience of Dr. Zaveri, the CEO of Farm Tech, India in some countries in Sub Sahara Africa, RMRDC is introducing three castor seed varieties ng B2, Castor ng222 and GCH7 for farm trials locally”

Foodfarmnews gathered that a committee had been set up to look into the matter for proper appropriation, but a text message sent to Dr. Ogunwusi of RMRDC asking how much was expended on importing the said seeds and the result of committee meeting  was yet to be replied as at the time of going to press.

It will be recalled that the Director General of the National Agricultural Seed Council (NASC), Dr. Olusegun Philip Ojo, said that it was illegal for anybody to go into seed production or importation without accreditation by NASC or the National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA).

Experts in many fora have severally frowned at importation of exotic seeds into the country without proper scientific accreditation and process saying assorted diseases could enter the country’s soils through the practice, and that all agencies and Research Institutes must try to work together in order to discourage this act.