A review of the Nigerian seed system

Abstract

Food insecurity is a major challenge to many households in Nigeria. Many of these households depend on farming to meet their nutritional needs. Seed is an essential input in agricultural production. High-quality seed is essential for improved agricultural productivity, amelioration of food insecurity and improvement in the living standard of farming households. This study is a qualitative investigation of the Nigerian seed system. The National Agricultural Seed Council is responsible for seed certification, distribution, quality control and utilization. Access to certified seeds by farmers in Nigeria is very low because of the high cost of improved seed varieties. Notwithstanding the advances made in the production of improved seeds, quality is a serious challenge as a result of an increase in the distribution of adulterated seeds. Farmers' seed preference affects their choice of certified seed variety. Insufficient access to farmers' preferred seed is limiting their choices and invariably limits their ability to be resilient to agricultural production risk. This has also made it difficult for farmers to meet up with the dynamics of market preferences. Among the challenges of the Nigerian seed system are poor distribution channels, lack of infrastructure, lack of trust in the quality of improved seed, and negative perception of the effects of certified seed on health among others. The study recommends that the national seed policy should be updated to combat counterfeit seeds and promote access for smallholder farmers. Farmers' preferences should be considered while developing seed system policy.