Farmer Managed Seed Systems Caravan 2023 Kicks Off in West Nile, Northern and Eastern Uganda

Participatory Ecological Land Use Management (PELUM) Uganda in collaboration with OXFAM Uganda, Eastern and Southern Africa Small-scale Farmers’ Forum (ESAFF) and partners;  Community Empowerment for Rural Development  (CEFORD), Community Integrated Development Initiatives (CIDI) and IIRR on Monday kicked off the Farmer Managed Seed Systems Caravan 2023 and Policy Discourse in the Districts of Nebbi, Adjumani, Apac, Omoro and Soroti from 25th-29th September 2023.

Josephine Akia Luyimbazi, PELUM Uganda Country Coordinator, said in a joint Press statement; that the major objective of the caravan is to facilitate cross-learning, experiential sharing, showcasing, and dialogue on best practices to strengthen farmer-managed seed systems, for improved household nutrition, food security and income. She was addressing a Press Conference at PELUM Uganda Offices, located in Kampala’s Ntinda suburb.

“The Farmer Managed Seed Systems Caravan will bring together a diverse group of participants, including Farmer Field School Members and facilitators, Farmer Field School representatives, community seed banks, Research institutions, Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), district Local Government Officials (production departments, Extension workers), plant breeders, media and other key actors in the seed sector. The caravan will also involve youth and women within the SD=HS project,”she said.

She added that the caravan will employ a mix of interactive sessions, including press conferences, field visits to successful farmer-managed seed enterprises, Youth boot camps, mentoring sessions, and Policy dialogue to discuss and generate policy recommendations for strengthening farmer-managed seed systems.

“This includes farmer variety registration for improved agricultural biodiversity, resilience, and productivity leading to better nutrition and income for smallholder farming households”, she added.

Joshua Aijuka, PELUM Uganda’s Head of Programs, said the Caravan will also provide space for experiential learning, dialogue, and policy integration.

“This is to strengthen Farmer Managed Seed Systems (FMSS) for enhanced household nutrition, and food security and generate policy discussions and debates, particularly regarding farmer variety registration and management of seed systems,”he said.

He added that; the caravan will foster partnerships and linkages among key stakeholders, ensuring the long-term sustainability of the Seed Diversity for Household Nutrition and Food Security (SD-HS) project.

“It is important to note that Uganda’s seed policy (2018) recognizes both the formal and informal seed systems, including the introduction of a new seed class, Quality Declared Seed (QDS),” he added.

He said the policy provides for registered farmers to engage in seed production and marketing of Quality Declared seeds within their localities under the supervision of the District Agricultural Officers, adding that the seed caravan is therefore a strategic contribution towards National Seed policy implementation.

OXFAM Uganda Resilience and Livelihood Manager, Charles Opio said to further consolidate the farmer-managed seed systems discourse, OXFAM Uganda in collaboration with ESAFF Uganda and PELUM Uganda  are embarking on a complementary seed policy initiative aimed at supporting farmer variety selection.

“This is intended to provide platforms that facilitate meaningful cross-learning and knowledge-sharing among project beneficiaries, including Farmer Field Schools and other stakeholders while integrating lessons and best practices into policy frameworks, which will strengthen farmer-managed seed systems for improved household nutrition and food security,”he said.

He added that; to climax the caravan they will have a policy dialogue on the 29^th of September 2023 in the Gulu district where they shall involve experiential learning, showcasing and exhibition of success stories and seed value chain, media engagement as well as policy discussions.

The Press Conference was also attended by successful Seed Farmers and a representative from the Plant Genetic Resources Centre located at the Uganda Gene Bank in Entebbe Botanical Gardens.

PELUM Uganda is part of the PELUM Association, a regional network of over 280 Civil Society Organizations in 12 countries in East, Central, and Southern Africa working in the area of participatory ecological land use management. The Association works to improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and the sustainability of farming communities, by fostering ecological land use management. Country chapters include Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Lesotho, Botswana, South Africa, Swaziland, and Ethiopia.

PELUM Uganda was constituted in 1995, as a network of like-minded Civil Social Organizations working to improve the livelihoods of Smallholder farmers and the sustainability of rural communities through fostering ecological land use management. The network has since grown in number and influence to currently 71-member organizations operating in 122 districts in Uganda reaching approximately three million farmers (3,000,000) smallholder farmers.