African nations advocate free seeds movement
- The Executive Director, CORAF, Abdou Tenkouano, said the countries in the region had worked hard to produce harmonised seed industry regulation to ensure that farmers would have access to quality seeds.
Representatives from 17 countries in West Africa and the Sahel sub-region are meeting in Abuja to demand the free movement of seeds across borders within the region.
It was also learnt that the West African Regional and Seedling Committee in collaboration with the CORAF and the United States Agency for International Development was working out strategies to end fake seed trade.
The Executive Director, CORAF, Abdou Tenkouano, said the countries in the region had worked hard to produce harmonised seed industry regulation to ensure that farmers would have access to quality seeds.
He noted that the three-day meeting would evaluate the progress member countries had made in implementing harmonised regulations on seed production and trade.
Tenkouano said the collaboration among the different groups in the region would also ensure a robust seed industry without violating member countries’ laws.
He said, “Harmonised laws and regulations provide the right conditions for promoting seed production and quality control. They provide the basis for healthy competition between seed companies, promote the free movement of seeds across borders and provide farmers with access to high quality seeds.”
In his address, the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Sabo Nanono, said Nigeria’s membership of the International Seed Trade Movement had helped in standardising seed production and distribution across the country.
The minister, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Abdulkadir Mu’azu, noted that the Federal Government was working hard to make the region a hub for excellent seed practices.
He said Nigeria had gone ahead of other countries by introducing molecular diagnostic laboratory for seed testing.
“We are enhancing our capacity for seed testing as we are now a member of the International Seed Testing Association and have moved from visual to diagnostic certification with the establishment of our molecular diagnostic laboratory in our head office in Sheda,” Nanono said.
