For those who have missed it, this month’s blog is about Quality Declared Seed (QDS) — and the practical successes it has been having in Uganda — with beans, pigeonpea, groundnuts, cowpea among others.

FAO and other specialists on have raised questions on:

  • Financing of local seed businesses (LSBs) start up and inspection process
  • Experience of farmers disaggregated by gender e.g. farmer buying behaviour, improvement of incomes, demand for seed, including QDS specifically
  • Marketing strategies and role of institutional buyers in QDS market development
  • QDS versus Certified seed in terms of standards or impact on access to capital by groups
  • Quality control mechanisms for QDS and breadth of management to ensure investment return

Here are some of the main points so far:

1. The demand for quality seed is increasing — groups have graduated from selling 2 MT to above 30 MT of QDS per season

2. Growers have embraced and conduct participatory variety demonstration every season with new varieties for farmers to appreciate attributes

3. QDS producers in Uganda pay a modest fee about US$ 20 for field inspection and US$ 10 for seed sampling and testing

4. With the Gender Action Based training members received with support from ISSD, men and women have known to share in decision making process e.g. raising money for starter foundation seed, getting suitable land to plant QDS, marketing of QDS and planning the use of the income from sales

5. Uganda Microfinance Support Centre has picked up interest in QDS business and currently working with a number of QDS farmers under Seed Receipt Financing (SRF)

6. Institutional buyers can do a lot by promoting client farmers to buy QDS (through cash or voucher systems) but not to purchase it and distribute for free to them. Free seed distribution distorts the seed market and demand

BUT, if we are going to move forward on seed qualities like QDS—let us hear from you here