We will embrace collaborative seed programme, says technical committee chairman

The Chairman, Technical Committee on Naming, Registration and Release of Crop varieties, Prof. O. O Olufajo has commended the effort of Nigerian and Dutch Governments for initiating a proactive Collaborative Seed Programme (CPS) that will bring about easy way of doing business for more economic earnings and more quality seeds accessibility to farmers especially in view of Plant Variety Protection Act of 2021.

 

Prof. O. O Olufajo responding to the presentation made by the Program Manager, Nigeria-Netherland CPS, Mr. Chimedu Agbara and others said all the mentioned efforts already put in place by the two partners would be well reported to the National committee body for consideration in order to enhance efficiency of job being done at the varieties registration, release and commercialization to farmers.

Prof. Olufajo said that the 34th meeting of technical sub-committee on Naming, Registration and Release of Crop Varieties have heard the impressive effort of the partnering governments of Nigeria and Dutch towards enhancing and strengthening the seed sub sector of the economy for more efficiency to accessibility of improved seeds to farmers and more earnings by all stakeholders of the sub sector. He added it’s a good development that would add value to seeds sector development in general.

Mr. Chimedu Agbara and his team told the gathering of plant breeders, research institutes and private seed companies who have come to defend their improved varieties for registration and release that the Nigerian-Dutch government under the CSP is doing everything possible to remove all those bottle neck in the sub seed sector of the country’s economy to ensure more economic earning and farmers’ access to quality seeds, saying that the partnering government (Dutch) is well known for effective and efficient seeds system in their country.

Agbara said the CSP being funded by the Dutch ministry of the foreign affairs with Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) is aimed at assisting seed system in the country as major stakeholders in the sub sector had identified 22 challenging areas to be enhanced, while areas of achievements also have been subjected to more evaluations.

Speaking also, Prof. Adesola Ajayi, the lead consultant on variety release topic of the CSP said that modern innovation and digitalization of the naming, registration and commercialization processes of improved seeds would be deplored to fast track the registration of improved and quality seeds in Nigeria saying the existing process is very cumbersome to ensure faster procedure as compared to other advanced countries, adding there are lot of paper documents in the present structure resulting to lengthy period of release in Nigeria. 

Prof. Ajayi stressed that about four crops areas have been selected as pilot to experiment the process of shortening the lengthy period of tomato, cassava, rice and maize releases, stressed the need for cost standardization in view of ecologies difference that determined price variations.

Meanwhile, the sub technical committee on crops in three consecutive days have approved many improved varieties for futher national approval against next year January that the date is not yet confirmed for the purpose of this report at the National Centre for Genetic Resources and Biotechnology (NACGRAB), Ibadan.