01 Jul 2020

Seed is a key input in improving crop production and yield t, Minister of Agricultural Development and Food Security, Dr Edwin Dikoloti has said.

Speaking at signing of a charter establishing SADC Seed Centre (SSC) in Gaborone on Monday, Dr Dikoloti, said the purpose of the charter was to govern cooperation of member states in coordinating seed certification and quality assurance.

The seed market, he said, was fragmented, small and difficult to access, therefore, the centre would improve regional seed trade, overall agricultural growth as well as seed security.

Dr Dikoloti said the centre would facilitate availability of high quality seeds to farmers within the SADC region following the agreement that was taken by the SADC committee of ministers responsible for agriculture in 2008.

In February 2010, SADC ministers of agriculture and food Security signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the implementation of the SADC Harmonised Seed Regulatory System (SHSRS).

The SHSRS, he said established commonly agreed regulatory standards, rules and procedures related to seed variety release, seed certification and quality assurance and quarantine as well as phytosanitary measures for seed.

Furthermore, he said the centre was in line with government’s promise to promote development of private sector participation in seed production and seedling development business.

The minister said the protocol was to provide protection of new varieties of plants by regional breeders to acknowledge their achievement and institutions.

“It is an important system to facilitate strategic associations and coordinated technology transfer in the context of public private partnership. The rights are important as they encourage more innovations as institutions and their scientists will be able to address issues that deal with plants, thus coming up with varies that are suitable to increase agricultural productivity in the country,” Dr Dikoloti said.

Also, he said, the rights encouraged foreign investment because more companies dealing with plant breeding would feel comfortable operating in the country thus enabling development of new plant varieties and provide an incentive to new plant breeders.

On one hand, SADC’s food, agriculture and natural resources director, Mr Domingos Gove, said the rationale for the system was premised on the need to facilitate enhanced seed trade in the region and increase availability of high quality seed to farmers through rationalising and removing national regulatory barriers for movement of seed across borders.

Mr Gove said the system would also promote economies of scale in seed supply and reduce market uncertainty and represented an attempt to remove technical barriers to trade in the regional seed market.

He said the purpose of the charter was to establish the SADC seed centre, which would be responsible for facilitating implementation of all components outlined in the system in order to attain regional seed security. ENDS