Farmers petition State, to come up with policies and laws to protect indigenous seeds

Nakuru,

Tuesday, October 10, 2023

KNA by Anne Mwale  

Farmers in the Central Rift are now calling on the national government to promote the production of indigenous crops and ensure access to their seeds to mitigate effects of climate change.

The over 500 farmers under Makongo Agriculturalists Network (MAN) further want both levels of government to come up with policies that would secure the sovereignty of Kenya’s indigenous seeds in a bid to enhance food security and conserve the indigenous seeds variety.

While petitioning the State to address shortage of indigenous seeds and food, organic farm inputs and ensure access to markets, MAN through its Spokesman Mr. Francis Ngiri called on the National and County Governments to put in place systems to identify and document all Kenyan seed varieties to protect sovereignty, history and boost food security.

He was speaking during an Indigenous Seed Networking and Exhibition Symposium organized by Seed Savers Network in collaboration with the County Government of Nakuru at Gilgil trading center that brought together small holder farmers, botanists, entomologists, agronomists, agricultural economists, meteorologists among a host of other professionals.

Ngiri said the conservation and use of traditional crop varieties provide a wealth of crop genetic diversity and should be recognized as critical to climate change adaptation.

More than 80 percent of small-scale farmers in the country, noted Ngiri, rely on the traditional seed sector, yet the country’s seed laws and regulations do not recognize the informal seed sector.

 It is illegal to sell uncertified seeds in Kenya, including the traditional seeds sold in local markets.

Due to Intellectual Property Rights and the Plant Variety Act which currently prohibits farmers from selling or exchanging seeds that are not registered, Seed Savers Network is encouraging farmers to come on board, have their seeds coded in the community seed banks so that they could lock out the issues of bio-piracy and stealing of their indigenous seeds.

 “Our lawmakers and technocrats at both levels of government should come up with legislations and policies that will allow farmers to produce safer and healthier foods using readily available indigenous seeds which they can share among themselves,” the MAN spokesman pointed out.

Ngiri disclosed that the Network is also promoting use of traditional methods of farming to smallholder farmers which is pesticide-free and less costly to enable them participate in farming practices to increase their households’ incomes while at the same time improve their nutritional status.

“Indigenous seeds go hand in hand with traditional farming. Farming is a venture that should be enjoyable and profitable to many, it should not be a venture which many small-scale farmers cannot afford,” he explained.

Ngiri added; “So, we are training our farmers to use the available resources, the waste from the farm and compost manure to do planting. We are also training them to prepare bio-pesticides to mix the available chilies to do spraying on their crops in case of diseases”.

He stated that if farmers could access the right traditional planting materials which are adaptive and resilient to climate change, they could remain productive under harsh weather conditions thereby contributing to food nutrition and security and improved household incomes.

Seed Savers Network is working with smallholder farmers to trace and preserve indigenous seeds at risk of extinction and reintroduce them to farms in Kenya while promoting traditional farming practices devoid of pesticides.

Once identified, the seeds are then preserved in seed and gene banks where farmers could access them during planting season.

During harvest season, farmers are required to take back some of the seeds from the harvested crops to store in the seed and gene banks with their names coded for identification and traceability.

The seedbanks have been established in villages close to farmers across Kenya. The Network has established 51 Community Seedbanks and Gene-banks.

It has a registered farmer base of 60, 000 members countrywide with headquarters in Gilgil and spread across Vihiga, Baringo and Kakamega counties.

Ngiri indicated that a lot of people were talking about climate change yet the seeds used on most farms were contributing to it.

 “What we are advocating for is the use of indigenous seeds and organic manure which is safer and friendly to the environment. However, there is an acute shortage of indigenous seeds and food, organic farm inputs and lack of access to local markets,” he added. 

Ngiri went on; “Rules and regulations should be put in place to protect sovereignty of indigenous seeds from multinational seed breeders and manufacturers as they are very significant in ensuring food security”.

Ngiri urged policy makers, agricultural experts and manufacturers to redirect their attention to climate smart food crops that for hundreds of years guaranteed food security such as sorghum, yams, arrowroots, cassava, sweet potato vines, finger millet, pigeon pea and traditional cereals such as groundnuts.

 He said Kenya needs to establish a system that would allow farmers to exchange and sell seeds among themselves which would further enhance conservation of indigenous seeds.

 “Agricultural experts should be encouraged to collaborate with small holder farmers in identifying important traits that can be suitable for breeding to produce seeds that are high yielding and can withstand climate change. When farmers are enabled to produce their own seeds the cost of production drastically drops enhancing seed quality and availability,” Ngiri added. 

Statistics from the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS) indicate that the informal seed sector in Kenya accounts for between 60-70 per cent seeds planted by farmers across the country.

Ms. Lucia Wamboi, also from MAN, said the Network is partnering with farmer groups across the devolved unit in training small holder farmers on indigenous seed bulking, multiplication and selection. They also are educated on developing seed banks at a smaller scale.

 “When the crops are harvested, they begin by sorting out high quality seed and thereafter preserve them with diatomaceous dust, a pesticide and agent that absorbs moisture and keeps the seeds dry. Our training model imparts farmers with agronomical practices that conserve the natural environment including water and air. They neither use synthetic fertilizer nor artificial pesticides. Farmers are taught on use of organic bio-pesticides formulation, liquid manure and use of external inorganic farm inputs such as urea or Diammonium phosphate,” indicated Ms. Wamboi. 

The training regime involves teaching locals on saving quality seeds from their farms in a bank and identifying the best seeds suited for a particular region.

“The success of plant and animal biodiversity practices lies with the youth. We emphasize on training them on the importance of preserving our indigenous seeds which in turn promotes food security,” observed Ms. Wamboi. 

According to the Kenya Climate Smart Agriculture Strategy - 2017-2026, negative climate change impacts are expected to be more adverse in developing countries, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa such as Kenya which has experienced increasing temperatures from 1960s coupled with increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events such as El Niño and La Niña.

“Climate change is posing a serious threat to livelihoods and if not mitigated many nations risk facing serious food shortages. Effects of the negative impacts will include declining agricultural productivity and loss of crops, livestock, fish and investments in agriculture due to changing temperatures and precipitation regimes and increased frequency and intensity of extreme weather events. Due to unpredictable weather patterns, farmers depending on rain-fed agriculture are registering loses and this affects the entire value chain leading to job losses hence poverty”, states the strategy report. 

Ms. Wamboi affirmed that their drive was to empower small scale farmers with information on how to have access to diverse and less costly traditional seeds for planting to contribute to the mitigation of climate change, fighting food insecurity in the country and also enhancing food sovereignty.

She explained that indigenous seeds mature faster and are drought resistant. “The government has a role in ensuring production of organic food which is good for health,” she said.

Ms. Wamboi asked the government to establish a resource center where farmers could learn best practices.

Gilgil Sub-County Administrator Ms. Agnes Kariuki observed that having better access to quality indigenous seed helps farmers produce more for household consumption and surplus for sale.

Ms. Kariuki indicated that indigenous foods present great value in adapting to changing weather patterns, varied soil types, temperature, pressure, clouds, wind, humidity and rainfall as they are able to withstand the challenges and hold the key to ending the ongoing drought in the horn of Africa region.

“The vision of the United Nations Decade of family farming 2019-2028 is a world where diverse, healthy and sustainable food and agricultural systems flourish, where resilient rural and urban communities enjoy a high quality of life in dignity, equity, free from hunger and poverty. Through Agro-biodiversity training conserving we will conserve our near extinct traditional foodstuffs by showing farmers how to preserve their high-quality genetic material,” stated Ms. Kariuki. 

The Sub-County administrator noted that the quality of most traditional seeds is as high as the commercial ones and could even be better as they have been grown in the country for ages.

 Mr. Simon Ngang’a, an agronomist, said that indigenous seeds are seeds that have been grown, selected and managed by local communities through several generations and are naturally adapted through an influence from local environmental factors in their growing environments.

He further said that indigenous seeds and food are resilient, diverse in character and occur in several different forms.

“These seeds and food are also resilient to threats arising from pests, disease and human interventions and are heterogeneous and polymorphic,” added Ngang’a. 

The agronomist highlighted that there are numerous benefits gained when indigenous seeds and foods are promoted and supported. “Promoting and supporting indigenous seeds and food assures sustainability of not only our food sufficiency but also an integral life support system that provides life and food-secure future thereby reducing poverty, enhancing food and nutrition security, besides improving natural resources and life in harmony with nature,” stated Ngang’a. 

He listed some actions to be taken in order to support and promote indigenous seed and food systems saying; “To fully support and promote our indigenous seed and food system we recommend revitalization of local food production systems traditions at the household level, development of laws to promote and support Farmer Managed Seed Systems (FMSS), promotion of agrobiodiversity and Agro-ecological practices to enhance livelihoods through food and nutrition security amongst others."

Courtesy; KNA