PROBLEMS RELATED TO SEED PRODUCTION IN THE AFRICAN REGION

Improved seeds can make a substantial contribution to agricultural pro ductivity in African countries. Seeds are one of the most important so urces of innovation, particularly in resource-constrained small farm e nvironments. They carry the genetic potential of the crops, determinin g the upper limit on yield and, therefore, the ultimate productivity o f other inputs. Furthermore, new roles for seeds are rapidly recognize d all over the world for the delivery systems of many innovative biote chnological products and as carriers of plant protection chemicals, bi ologicals and growth regulators. The seed sector development in Africa varies considerably among countries. Rather effective and diversified seed industries have slowly emerged and are operational in a few coun tries (e.g. Egypt, Kenya, Zimbabwe). In a growing number of other coun tries (e.g. Malawi, Zambia) the seed production and supply system has developed reasonably well in some areas for some crops. However, in mo st countries (e.g. Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Tanzania and Uganda) pro gress has been very limited in spite of investments and assistance. Du ring the last decade a number of countries have undergone privatisatio n and/or seed market liberalisation as potential solutions to under-pe rformance in the seed sector. However, it is not certain that this wil l produce a practical improvement and solve the problems of the poor r ural majority of the population. In this paper the main problems relat ed to the seed sector in Africa are discussed together with the possib le roles of the private and public sectors in developing and maintaini ng an efficient and active seed industry.