Strengthening the Science of Delivery by increasing total seed production and availability, increasing access to high-quality seed of improved varieties, creating demand for quality seed (e.g. through value-chain support, demonstration trials, postharvest handling including seed, business training and market linkages), reaching farmers through formal and informal seed systems, lowering costs of seed.......

1. RP-GG Meeting with the DDG
05/01/2021
Chris Ojiewo
Essegbemon Akpo
Geffrey Muricho
Mequanint Melesse
Risper Gekanana
Grace Waithira
Philip Zeph
Delivering Accelerated On-farm Genetic Gains

2. Speed breeding: From seed to seed in 60 days
Approximately 6 generations a year
20 days
Cost: <30 US$ 25 ˚C and 22 hours light/day
Speed breeding = Speed release of
superior varieties with better
genetics, but where is speed
adoption, without technology
delivery strategy
Rapid generation turnover
Rapid generation advance
Speed breeding
Years per
cycle
Genetic gain
over time
Selection
intensity
Selection
accuracy
Genetic
variance
“The hardest thing to see is what is in
front of your eyes.”- Goethe

3. Rapid varietal replacement by an effective dissemination system
Breeding
Improved
varieties/lines
CGIAR/NARS
NARES identify and release superior
replacements for current varieties
Continuous deliver new varieties through
seed systems
PrivateNGOsGOs
Farmers
Access to markets
Through Digital Platforms
Agronomy
Seed System
Foundation seeds
Seed is the vehicle that carries the
improved genetics to end-users

4. Theme Seed Systems: Strengthening the Science of Delivery
1. increasing total seed production and availability (e.g. through decentralizing
production);
2. increasing access to high-quality seed of improved varieties (e.g. through
small seed packs, and better coordination with other stakeholders);
3. creating demand for quality seed (e.g. through value-chain support,
demonstration trials, postharvest handling including seed, business training
and market linkages);
4. reaching farmers through formal and informal seed systems (bundling seed
with other products eg seed treatment);
5. lowering costs of seed (e.g. through quality declared seed; strengthening
community seed production approaches).

5. Increasing seed production: Decentralized seed systems
1. Seed Producing SMEs (Amwari in Ethiopia)
• 1995: individual chickpea farmer
• 2007: chickpea seed producer
• 2009: a seed producers’ association with 119 members.
• 2012: a 10 member private seed company – Amuari PLC.
• Current: business support from ISSD; Financial support from AGRA
2. Seed Cooperatives in WCA
• In Burkina, at least 54 seed-producing cooperatives
• Two of them specialize in foundation seed production for INERA.
• Of these, one has 200 seed producers operating in irrigated land and
sells to seed company NAFASO
• UGCPA/BM, a cooperative union in Boucle du Mouhoun has
169 farmer groups from 15 cooperatives;
• Land size ranges from <5 ha to >100ha per farmer per crop
3. Farmer Seed Researcher Groups
(over 700 in Tanzania)

6. Engaging Private Sector: Seed production and dissemination
Operations Type 1 Type 2 Type 3 Type 4 Type 5
Variety development Breeding
Testing
Seed Production Basic
Foundation
Certified
Seed Marketing Packaging
Selling
Resources
Private Staff + Land +
Equipment +
Varieties
Staff + Land +
Equipment
Staff + Equipment Staff None
Public
(CGIAR; NARS)
Varieties
(non exclusive)
Varieties Varieties + Land Varieties + Land +
Equipment
Varieties + Land +
Equipment + Staff

7. Increasing access to high-quality seed : what drives seed purchase?
24
4
64
6
Own seed
Friends/neighbours/relati
ves
Local market
Agro-dealer
NGO/UN
Others
64% of legume farmers are buying
‘seed’ from local markets
(McGuire and Sperling, 2016):
-Unknown variety and hence
performance
-Unknown vigor and germination
-Unknown seed-borne disease
burden
-Subpar genetic purity
-Farmer needs to further sort
• Price premiums for
pure grain
• Sorting commonly
needed and costly
• High quality seed of
new varieties
delivers quality grain
and higher yields for
farmers
• Thus, both traders
and farmers highly
incentivized to use
improved seed!

8. Lowering costs of seed : Small seed packs
Tanzania public and private seed companies moved from 50
kg seed bag to 2 kg selling 542 tons in 2 kg packs

9. Seed Systems Strategy: seed value chain
Affecting farm decisions:
• Allocation of resources
• Choice of crop
• Choice of variety
 Varietal turnover
• Choice of seed source
 Seed replacement rate

10. Key Achievements of Tropical Legumes Projects
304
Improved
varieties
4.4 M ha
Area
planted
397,050t
Certified
seeds
4.9 M t
Grain
Produced
22 M
farmers
reached
U$2.6 B
Value
of grain

11. Key Achievements of HOPE Projects (2010 – 2019)
64
Improved
varieties
1.8 M ha
Area
planted
13,669 t
Certified/QDS
seeds
2.1 M t
Grain
Produced
1.3 M
farmers
reached
U$639 M
Value
of grain

12. Accelerated Varietal
Improvement and
Seed Delivery of
Legumes and
Cereals in Africa
(AVISA)

13. Key Pillars of Tropical Legumes Project
Development and release of farmer-preferred varieties
in the target crop x geography
Strengthening of the legume breeding capacity of the
partner CGIAR and NARS partners
Program Improvement Plan (PIP) based on the results of the Breeding
Program Assessment Tool (BPAT)
The establishment of sustainable seed delivery systems
that service the needs of small-holders

14. Genesis of Breeding Modernization in TL Project
Improved Targeting:
Develop formal product profiles for the key varieties needed for each region you
are serving
Prioritize traits and rationalize resource allocation to priorities
Allocate testing to best align with Target Environments and markets
Faster Speed:
Modify workflows to obtain one or more additional generations per year
Implement rapid Single Seed Descent (SSD) workflow with appropriate recycling
of elite parents in the pipeline
Establish a calendar workflow by month w/ key activities to achieve rapid cycling
around the year

15. Greater Scale and Efficiency (increased throughput for same spend):
Make more crosses, handle larger populations, evaluate more plots at more sites.
Adopt IT tools like the BMS and molecular marker systems
Adopt modern high-throughput phenotyping and genotyping protocols and
platforms
Improve technique and operational efficiencies in the breeding pipelines and
testing methodologies
Adopt better designs that optimize plot size, number of locations and reps per
location
Adopt increased mechanization and automation (plot threshers, seed cleaners,
seed counters, bar coding, adopt electronic data capture.
Adopt dissemination models that are rapid and that support rapid varietal
replacement

16. Improved Data and Product Quality:
Adopt processes that improve precision and accuracy of data and data
handling (electronic capture, bar coding)
Implement a modern information management systems (IBP-Breeding
Management System), Improved designs
Adopt genotyping and analytics for quality control of parents and
crosses.
Adopt better trial site land management and other practices to reduce
experimental error/increase heritability (SOPs)
Adopt improved experimental and statistical designs and methods
(e.g. statistical removal of field trends in trials).

17. Track Improvements:
Track pipeline metrics by test stage-numbers of crosses, lines
established per cross, lines in Initial Evaluation Trials, Prelim Trials,
Advanced Yield Trials.
Track quality metrics of these trials, such as CV%-should be
decreasing.
Monitor genetic gains.

18. Rapid-cycle improvement of source population drives the
rate of genetic gain (by changing gene frequencies)
Extensive multi-location and onfarm testing of candidate cultivars
Continuously deliver new varieties (via foundation seed) to
companies/GOs/NGOs
NARES identify and release superior replacements for current
varieties (data!)
PO4: Continuous delivery of new varieties
to replace the old via the seed systems
PO2: Data driven decisions to select the
product for dissemination, making the
investment case
Trait introgressionA/biotic stress trait pipeline
Genomic prediction
PO1: Breeding
Superior lines
Public sector Private sector Community seed
producers
 Farmers
Early generation seed
Access to elite genetic diversity
PO3: Market research, foresight
analysis, customer profiling, TPE
profiling, leading to product profiling
and targeting
CGIAR/NARS
Agronomic packages
 Grain markets
USAID - FtF
Gov. Turkey
EU-DESIRA
EiB - CtEH
AVISA Modernization of Crop
Improvement and Seed Delivery

19. AVISA Geolocation of Work and Budget
Burkina Faso
Ghana
Nigeria
Ethiopia
Tanzania
Mali
Uganda
(Supplement:$ 9,659,474
from USAID)
(Duration: 24 months)
(Budget:$29,933,930 from BMGF)
(Duration: 48 months)
(Supplement:$ 985,000
from BMGF)
(Supplement:$2,656,004 of HOPE-II)
Grand total supplement: $3,641,004
(Duration: 24 months)
Supplement: Euros 5 Million (under
negotiation with the Government of
Turkey)
Supplement: Euros 5 Million
(implemented in Mali in collaboration
with EU-DESIRA project)

20. Consolidate breeding activities and complimentary disciplines
Matopos, Zimbabwe
Regional Crop Improvement Hubs Concept
Kawanda, Uganda
Samanko, Mali
Kano, Nigeria

21. SEEDx and ClimMob Apps for granular, accurate and real-
time data from wide on-farm trials
1 4 5 117 8 9 10
Ownership
126
Trait
Development
Decline
Linefixed
Population
improvement
Introduction
Growth
Maturity
Phaseout
Outof
assortment
Pre
commercial
Testing&
registration
R&D Crop Marketing
3
EarlyTesting
Latetesting
PLC Stages
• Large N on-farm trials
• Three entries, randomized
• Pre-release (Stage 5-6)

22. SEED CATALOGUE (SEARCH)
GPS Coordinates
of the Plot
Image of
the plot
Performance
Info
DIGITAL SEED ROADMAP TOOL
Variety | Geo | Target | Allocation | Track
Field Staff
Uses the M&E mobile
application to enter the
variety trial output data
(YIELD info)
M&E TOOL (MEASURE)
M&E (MEASURE) Dashboard
(TRIAL DATA)
Seeds Spl
Uses the Seed
Roadmap to
generate,
allocate, track
seed
production
details
CLOUD SERVER
Digital seed roadmap: seed production planning

23. YSG quality
Center
Government for
policy and regulation
(RAS – 10% Revenue
on youth/ women/
disabled); Ownership
in the development
docket
Seed digital
road map
Aggregator
demands on
amount and
quality
Sustainable
finance access
mechanism (we
still need to
figure this out)
Small/
Medium scale
farmer
Operational
Model for Seed
Revolving
Fund-Youth
Engagement &
Gender
Inclusion (SRF-
YEGI)
NARS (EGS); 5-
Seed companies
mapped to the
corridors; 700
QDS producers
(from TLIII)
-Info/B.C.C
- Inputs
- Outputs

24. Challenges
Limited hands, high demand for delivery
Value chain pathways in terms of income enhancement (Small-scale producers rather than
smallholder farmers)
Insufficient product targeting , market segmentation and value proposition definition
Varieties released without robust data to support investment in commercialization
Seed enterprises operating at sub-optimal marginal returns on their investments
Limited interest of formal seed sector to include ICRISAT mandate crops in their portfolio
Limited awareness of the merits of new varieties
Limited use of quality inputs (seed and fertilizer) leading to poor quality of outputs with low
demand by off-takers
Timely access to quality seed limited by inadequate policies
Multiple uncoordinated stakeholder efforts along the seed value chain;

25. Opportunities
Deputy Chair of the Steering Group of the African Seed and Biotechnology Platform
Chair the Working Group on Seed Quality Assurance and Certification Systems of the Platform
Institutionalize and capacitate definition and regular review market-responsive product profiles
Establish portfolio process to manage the pipeline of varieties based on extensive on-farm
testing
Facilitate strategic demand-led public-private partnerships to strengthen EGS and cert seed
production
Strengthen the technical and business capacity of the seed enterprises for profitable targeting
of seed production and supply
Develop and demonstrate cost effective seed + input bundles, with quality standards
Policy solutions, including flexible registration and licensing to facilitate varietal handover for
commercialization
Foresight analysis to estimate the magnitude and geographical dist. of future demand

26. “Don't judge a day by the harvest you reap but by
the seeds you plant.” Robert Louis Stevenson
Thank you !