Current developments in seed laws harmonisation in Africa

The agricultural sector is important in Africa. It is a dominant sector in terms of employment, export earnings, and livelihoods for many populations. It accounts for over 20% of Africa’s GPD (AFDB, 2016). Even then, Africa remains a net food importer. This situation is likely to remain as the continent’s agricultural sector faces immense challenges from the adverse effects of climate change among others. The structure of Africa’s food production system is characterised by a vast majority of farmers engaging with farming activities for a dual purpose-food production for home consumption and for the market. Commercial agriculture is also thriving for some crops.

Seeds are at the core of food production, and seed laws cover a broad range of activities over seed in the agricultural sector. The activities that seed laws cover include seed testing, certification, variety release, and registration, phytosanitary measures, and plant breeders’ rights or plant varieties protection. The manner in which each of these activities are regulated in the law has a profound effect on the outcome of seed production, availability, accessibility and therefore how agricultural systems are shaped. In Africa’s context, seed laws also have to fit within the unique characteristics and context of small-scale farmers.

This report reviews the current status of seed laws internationally, at the continental level in Africa, in the EU, in the US as well as international programs of relevance to seed laws in Africa. The review of EU laws is based on the fact that the EU is a key trading partner with African countries and regional economic blocs and that policy developments in the EU such as the European Green Deal (EGD) are likely to have an impact on seed laws in the EU and beyond. The brief review of US seed laws and US seed programs in Africa are highlighted with a view to demonstrate other external parties’ actions in influencing seed laws in Africa. This report also reviews the debates informing the status of these laws. These debates revolve around the rights of farmers to save, reuse, and exchange or sell farm-saved seed. Saving, re-using, exchanging or selling farm-saved seed is not only a practice that farmers especially in Africa have been engaging for a long time as a strategy to overcome the challenge of accessing seed, but is also recognized as a farmer right internationally. This practice has contributed immensely towards the conservation of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. Further, the report examines the extent to which African farmers participate in the processes for the formulation of seed policies, noting that participation is necessary if seed laws, policies and programmes are to be relevant, effective and sustainable.

Promotion of agroecological, healthy and affordable food systems in Africa cannot be achieved without farmers participating in seed policy making processes. These policies include those concerning maintaining the rights of farmers to save, use and exchange farms-saved seeds and harvests of protected as well as indigenous varieties. There is a wide range of treaties, instruments and policies that regulate seed laws at the international level, continental level, regionally in Africa as well as at the national level.