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| Reply To: | The Community of Practice of Seed Security Assessments for the Horn of Africa < [log in to unmask]> |
| Date: | Wed, 13 Aug 2014 13:42:44 +0300 |
| Content-Type: | multipart/alternative |
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The Community of Practice of Seed Security Assessments for the Horn of
Africa
Please, I am glad that you have taken up this important and seed
challenging topic on-line discussion. It is good that I am just a day old,
from a recent field post distribution monitoring conducted on groundnut
seeds distributed this year by ICRC at outreach villages in South Sudan.
One of the responses got on the groundnut variety was “the seeds were
viable but shrivelled not sorted out and after germination plant vigor
raises eye brows by most farmers because some groundnut plants show
weaker performance on some spots randomly compared to others growing
vigorously”(groundnut plants are not growing uniformly).
a). Varietal suitability:
The unsuitability issue of varieties deliverable inform of seed aid is
absolutely true however, I can say; seed aid workers cannot exclusively
be held responsible for the faulty seed intervention because this result
as effects of mistakes along the seed value chain. The plant breeders,
quality control, formal seed sector drivers (development drivers and
enterprise) deeply contribute.
1. Formal seed research stations and other breeders always
disseminate sky high information on new improved seeds that is not fully
captured at all levels of the seed value chain. There is need to
administer and make sure similar simplified information understandable
made to different segment along the seed value chain
2. Seed quality control sectors in some cases manipulate (for their
interest) realities about a particular seed security to attract clients.
Experience showed that seed quarantine is no longer effective because of
weaker supervision from a designated sector. Although people are aware,
there is need for an increased awareness on paramount importance of seeds
as compared to food because quality food crop seeds produce quality
lifesaving food
b). Seed security assessment:
Some readers may definitely concur with me and others disagree because
they think seed insecurity can be based on single response of affected
population/what they tell “we do not have crop seeds”. For proper seed
security assessment, such statement indicate needs for thoroughly seeds
security assessment for better understanding of the seeds concept of a
particular area where the crisis/disaster affected population then seeds
strategies developed for seed intervention
c). Accountability to the affected population:
When I take scenario from South Sudan, the humanitarian actors on seed
related intervention is top-down approach. A seed policy framework in
South Sudan is still on draft (not officially recognized) and mapping of
seed variety occurrences in particular livelihood zone generally not
addressed clearly.
Majority of humanitarian actors’ seed security intervention are too
ambitious that they consider huge number of households that satisfy donor
mandate. The choice of seed types, seed varieties are actually based on
seed accessibility at international or local markets not supporting the
views of affected population.
The only solution for humanitarian actors to involve the affected
population in planning seed security project intervention at
administrative area clusters.
Regards,
Joseph Faustino Mokorondere
Agro Field Officer
The International Committee of the Red Cross
Ministry Road Amarat Juba, South Sudan
Mobile: +211 (0) 956332711
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