Herpers, S., Vodouhe, R. S., Halewood, M., & Jonge, B. D. (2017). The support for farmer-led seed systems in African seed laws
The objective of this report is to compare regional and national seed laws in Africa, and analyse the extent to which they support (or undermine) farmers’ participation in seed systems. The paper pays particular attention to how or whether these laws recognize farmers as conservers and breeders of crop varieties, and as potential multipliers and providers of seed, through a range of potential means, from traditional exchanges at local levels to commercial sales at a national or even regional scale. The study is intended to encompass all African countries. The report also identifies and analyses combinations of national policies, legislation, regulations and executive decrees regulating the seed sector in 35 African countries: Algeria, Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Ethiopia, Egypt, Gabon, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Morocco, Mauritania, Malawi, Mauritius, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, South Africa, Senegal, South Sudan, Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.