Background and Rationale

Seed systems in Africa south of the Sahara have been a central topic in the public discourse as part of wider conversations on policy options for agriculture and rural development. Although seed systems in the region have followed different development trajectories, they do seem to be affected by political economy, farming system, agroecological, and market development factors that policymakers and stakeholders must address if the systems are to thrive. Political economy issues appear to shape the debate, including limited support for agricultural research, restrictive regulations and inadequate capacity of regulatory agencies, and weak vertical and horizontal coordination among different key actors. Political economy refers to actors and coalitions of actors with competing perspectives, interests, and resources shaping seed policy change processes in each country and for each crop (see Hassena et al. (2016 ) and Alemu (2011 ) on Ethiopia). Policy and regulatory reforms are purported to facilitate increased production, delivery, and uptake of improved seeds and technologies. Influencing government agencies to initiate the review of existing and enact new policies involves many stakeholders including a range of seed industry players such as regulatory agencies, parliament, agricultural technical groups, government policy directorates, public and private research agencies and seed associations.

Tegemeo Institute of Agricultural Policy and Development of Egerton University and Centre for African Bio-Entrepreneurship (CABE) in partnership with International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) conduced a study between June and October 2019 to assess the pace and dynamics of policy change and the factors that affect the development of maize and potato seed systems and of markets in Kenya. The study involved a review of key policy, regulatory, and strategy documents relevant to seed system and market development in the country, with a focus on the progress made in strengthening maize and potato seed systems and markets and political economy factors that have influenced policy adoption and outcomes. The review was augmented with information from key informant interviews and focus group discussions with a wide range of actors in the respective seed systems.

Findings of the study suggest that Kenya’s devolution process and the Jubilee government’s Big Four Agenda—alongside political economy factors related to agricultural extension, seed regulations, and public financing—have had and continue to have a considerable effect on the seed systems and markets for maize and potato, potentially enabling and constraining progress on several fronts.

Despite devolution’s many teething problems, it has emerged as a popular system of governance. It provides an opportunity for county governments to identify problems affecting maize and potato production and local solutions. The Big Four Agenda’s prioritization of maize presents an opportunity for maize seed market expansion through demand creation. The agenda’s focus on enhancing marketing and storage for grains, area expansion, irrigation, and fertilizer use should both directly and indirectly create demand for seed. That could provide the opportunity to support the growth of small-scale seed companies, and thus expansion of the seed market, and could also contribute to acceleration of varietal turnover on farms. However, it would require proper planning and coordination to ensure a supply of seed to meet the potential demand. That calls for greater coordination between the national government (the initiator of the agenda), counties (implementation level of agricultural initiatives), and seed producers and distributors. The need for a strong research–extension–farmer linkage cannot be ignored if research and technology are to be responsive to farmers’ needs. The weak extension system in Kenya implies weak linkage between research and the farmer, and that has in part contributed to many maize seed varieties being produced by research but only a few being adopted by farmers. Innovative extension service delivery approaches that bridge the gap between farmers and research are needed.

Prioritizing the potato value chain and emphasizing seed multiplication/ distribution in both the Big Four Agenda and the Agricultural Sector Growth and Transformation Strategy (ASTGS) should give a big boost to the development of the potato seed system, given the political context of the Big Four Agenda. But weak coordination between the national and county governments and a lack of transparency in allocation of resources to counties for implementation of the agenda’s initiatives may hinder implementation. The scarcity of certified potato seed in the country, lengthy process of seed production and multiplication, and bilateral negotiations between the Kenya and foreign governments all have contributed to allowing importation of basic seed for multiplication and germplasm for production of basic and subsequent classes of seeds. However, opposition has emerged regarding importation of foreign potato varieties for multiplication locally. The actors that oppose the idea cite pests and diseases and problems with quality given the different agroecologies in Kenya and Europe, while those that support the idea view the contrary arguments as restricting business. These stances indicate both a contest between domestic and foreign seed and the existence of vast market opportunities in the local potato seed system.

There seems to be little urgency to review the National Seed Policy despite acknowledged recognition of the need for its review following devolution and the need to address concerns that the regulations governing the seed sector are not adequately addressing vegetatively propagated crops such as potato. Classifying potato as a scheduled crop whose seed must undergo mandatory certification in the formal system appears insensitive to the reality that the supply of certified potato seed is quite low and that most farmers could not afford such seed even if it were readily available. The suggestion to allow for Quality Declared Seeds (QDS) for potato seems to be reasonable but that would require changing regulations. It is unlikely that such a change would occur in the near term given the argument that formalizing QDS would work against efforts to control potato pests and diseases. Nevertheless, the need to review seed regulations to guide the use of vegetative propagation technologies such apical cuttings persists.

Financing to agriculture affects research and extension. Research is key to seed variety development while extension is an important interface between research (variety development) and seed use (demand). However, budgetary allocation to the agricultural sector in Kenya has been generally low, with the share of that allocation in the total national budget declining over time. The current public investment in the agriculture sector is very low – 2-3% of national budget against the CAADP target of 10%. Funding for agricultural research and extension and advisory services is also woefully low, with targets often not met. For example, the World Bank (2019 ) reports that the share of expenditure on agricultural research in total expenditure for the agricultural sector averaged 3 percent against a target of 12 percent outlined in the medium-term plan for the sector. Similarly, expenditure share on extension and advisory services in the agriculture sector’s total expenditure averaged 3 percent against a target of 6 percent. Although donors and NGOs fund research and extension through projects, the government needs to lead funding for research and extension. This situation calls for innovative financing mechanisms, in particular private public partnerships – with government-backed guarantee funds.

The convening team proposes a national stakeholder workshop to engage policymakers, a range of seed industry players, and development practitioners at the country level to discuss the findings of the research and share ideas and insights for strengthening seed systems and promoting market development in Kenya.

Objectives of the convening

1. Disseminate the findings of the research
2. Validate the findings of the research
3. Provide a platform for the stakeholders to engage in conversations that generate insights to support and influence policy for strengthening seed systems and promoting market development in Kenya.

Expected Outcome

1. Findings of the research shared with and validated by a diverse group of stakeholders in the maize and potato seed systems in Kenya.
2. Insights for supporting and influencing policy for strengthening seed systems and promoting market development in Kenya generated and shared with various stakeholders.
3. A platform/mechanism for continued seed systems stakeholders’ interaction and engagement mutually agreed upon.

Structure and approach

The workshop will focus on the political economy issues affecting the development of maize and potato seed systems and markets in Kenya. Consolidated evidence from the study conducted between June - October 2019 will be shared in the form of key policy messages for discussion and validation. In addition, there will be plenary and breakout sessions, and interactive learning sessions to facilitate conversations for ideas and insights that will support and influence policy for strengthening seed systems and promoting market development in Kenya. To ensure the safety of all participants, current COVID-19 protocols laid out by the Ministry of Health, Kenya and WHO shall be fully observed.

Target Stakeholders

Sixty participants are expected at the workshop. The partcipants will include senior officers from the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries & Cooperatives (MoALFC), and specifically Crops and Policy Directorates, and representatives from research and development organizations, farmer organizations, industry associations, and non-state actors. Government representatives from selected counties relevant for maize and potato and seed companies, producers, traders and users (farmers) located in the counties will also be invited. See system regulatory bodies/ agencies and development partners wil alos be among the participants.

Partners

Tegemeo Institute: Tegemeo Institute of Agricultural Policy and Development is a Policy Research Institute under Egerton University with a mandate to undertake empirical research and analysis on contemporary economic and agricultural policy issues in Kenya. The Institute is widely recognized as a centre of excellence in policy analysis on topical agricultural issues of the day, and in outreach to disseminate research and analysis findings to a range of stakeholders in the agriculture and development space, including government, with a view to influencing policy and decision making processes.

CABE: The Centre for African Bio-Entrepreneurship (CABE) is a Non-Governmental Organisation in Kenya. CABE is established as a knowledge sharing organization that works to enhance the skills of smallholder farmers, women and youth agripreneurs in Kenya to advance their meaningful participation in agriculture and agribusiness activities.

MoALFC: Kenya Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives is currently comprised of four State Departments: Crop Development & Agricultural Research; Livestock; Fisheries, Aquaculture & The Blue Economy; and Cooperatives. In the devolved government structure, one of the core fucntions of the MoALFC is formulation, implementation and monitoring of agricultural legislations, regulations and policies, while the 47 County Governments are each responsible for, among other functions, the direct implementation of the policies.

NPCK: The National Potato Council of Kenya (NPCK) is a public private partnership (PPP) and a multi-stakeholder organization that has the responsibility of planning, organizing, and co-coordinating value chain activities of the potato subsector and developing it into a robust, competitive, and self-regulating industry.

IFPRI: The International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) provides research-based policy solutions to sustainably reduce poverty and end hunger and malnutrition in developing countries. Established in 1975, IFPRI currently has more than 600 employees working in over 50 countries. It is a research center of CGIAR, a worldwide partnership engaged in agricultural research for development.

ISSD Africa: The Integrated Seed Sector Development (ISSD is an international community of practice, supporting seed sector transformation and innovation on the African continent. ISSD approach aims to strengthen different seed systems on a national and continental scale. The ISSD approach supports the development of a vibrant, pluralistic, and marketoriented seed sector.