Performance of direct seed marketing pilot program in Ethiopia: Lessons for scaling-up
This study evaluates the impact in the main cropping season of 2015 of a new approach to the distribution of improved seed in Ethiopia, known as Direct Seed Marketing (DSM). Under DSM, seed producers are allowed to sell seed directly to farmers, in contrast to the conventional seed marketing (CSM) s...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Artículo preliminar |
| Language: | Inglés |
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International Food Policy Research Institute
2019
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145539 |
| _version_ | 1855519658662166528 |
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| author | Mekonen, Leulsegged Kasa Minot, Nicholas Warner, James Abate, Gashaw T. |
| author_browse | Abate, Gashaw T. Mekonen, Leulsegged Kasa Minot, Nicholas Warner, James |
| author_facet | Mekonen, Leulsegged Kasa Minot, Nicholas Warner, James Abate, Gashaw T. |
| author_sort | Mekonen, Leulsegged Kasa |
| collection | Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace) |
| description | This study evaluates the impact in the main cropping season of 2015 of a new approach to the distribution of improved seed in Ethiopia, known as Direct Seed Marketing (DSM). Under DSM, seed producers are allowed to sell seed directly to farmers, in contrast to the conventional seed marketing (CSM) system in which seed passes from seed producers to regional Bureaus of Agriculture to woreda Agricultural Offices to Development Agents, cooperative unions, and primary cooperatives, who, in turn, sell the seed to farmers. The study is based on a survey of 800 farmers, 118 agricultural extension workers, 75 seed sellers, and 24 seed producers in Amhara, Oromia, Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples (SNNP), and Tigray regions. The performance of the DSM program in 2015 was evaluated on eight criteria: seed availability, sufficiency of supply, timeliness of delivery, seed pricing, quality, ensuring accountability for low-quality seed, ease of purchase, and use of public resources. The results indicate that DSM had heterogeneous effects across the different regions, showing the need to strengthen the sharing of experiences with the program across the regions of Ethiopia to scale up DSM’s benefits. However, when we consider the overall DSM program without regional disaggregation, the DSM and CSM systems do not differ significantly on most of the eight criteria, although DSM required significantly less of the time of the farmer-level agricultural extension agents, the Development Agents. DSM performed as well as CSM across the eight criteria examined, while requiring 39 percent less time for the involvement the Development Agents. Farmers’ subjective views of DSM were quite positive. On most criteria, 50 to 65 percent of farmers said DSM performed “better” or “much better” than CSM. The study also identifies specific areas where the performance of DSM needs to be improved. A review of international experience with seed systems is used to provide some additional recommendations regarding the longer-term development of seed systems in Ethiopia. |
| format | Artículo preliminar |
| id | CGSpace145539 |
| institution | CGIAR Consortium |
| language | Inglés |
| publishDate | 2019 |
| publishDateRange | 2019 |
| publishDateSort | 2019 |
| publisher | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| publisherStr | International Food Policy Research Institute |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | CGSpace1455392025-11-06T05:41:02Z Performance of direct seed marketing pilot program in Ethiopia: Lessons for scaling-up Mekonen, Leulsegged Kasa Minot, Nicholas Warner, James Abate, Gashaw T. seed systems seed quality seeds agricultural extension crops seed production This study evaluates the impact in the main cropping season of 2015 of a new approach to the distribution of improved seed in Ethiopia, known as Direct Seed Marketing (DSM). Under DSM, seed producers are allowed to sell seed directly to farmers, in contrast to the conventional seed marketing (CSM) system in which seed passes from seed producers to regional Bureaus of Agriculture to woreda Agricultural Offices to Development Agents, cooperative unions, and primary cooperatives, who, in turn, sell the seed to farmers. The study is based on a survey of 800 farmers, 118 agricultural extension workers, 75 seed sellers, and 24 seed producers in Amhara, Oromia, Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples (SNNP), and Tigray regions. The performance of the DSM program in 2015 was evaluated on eight criteria: seed availability, sufficiency of supply, timeliness of delivery, seed pricing, quality, ensuring accountability for low-quality seed, ease of purchase, and use of public resources. The results indicate that DSM had heterogeneous effects across the different regions, showing the need to strengthen the sharing of experiences with the program across the regions of Ethiopia to scale up DSM’s benefits. However, when we consider the overall DSM program without regional disaggregation, the DSM and CSM systems do not differ significantly on most of the eight criteria, although DSM required significantly less of the time of the farmer-level agricultural extension agents, the Development Agents. DSM performed as well as CSM across the eight criteria examined, while requiring 39 percent less time for the involvement the Development Agents. Farmers’ subjective views of DSM were quite positive. On most criteria, 50 to 65 percent of farmers said DSM performed “better” or “much better” than CSM. The study also identifies specific areas where the performance of DSM needs to be improved. A review of international experience with seed systems is used to provide some additional recommendations regarding the longer-term development of seed systems in Ethiopia. 2019-06-15 2024-06-21T09:04:38Z 2024-06-21T09:04:38Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145539 en https://doi.org/10.2499/p15738coll2.134247 Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Policy Studies Institute Mekonen, Leulsegged Kasa; Minot, Nicholas; Warner, James; and Abate, Gashaw T. 2019. Performance of direct seed marketing pilot program in Ethiopia: Lessons for scaling-up. ESSP Working Paper 132. Washington, DC and Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia Policy Studies Institute. https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145539 |
| spellingShingle | seed systems seed quality seeds agricultural extension crops seed production Mekonen, Leulsegged Kasa Minot, Nicholas Warner, James Abate, Gashaw T. Performance of direct seed marketing pilot program in Ethiopia: Lessons for scaling-up |
| title | Performance of direct seed marketing pilot program in Ethiopia: Lessons for scaling-up |
| title_full | Performance of direct seed marketing pilot program in Ethiopia: Lessons for scaling-up |
| title_fullStr | Performance of direct seed marketing pilot program in Ethiopia: Lessons for scaling-up |
| title_full_unstemmed | Performance of direct seed marketing pilot program in Ethiopia: Lessons for scaling-up |
| title_short | Performance of direct seed marketing pilot program in Ethiopia: Lessons for scaling-up |
| title_sort | performance of direct seed marketing pilot program in ethiopia lessons for scaling up |
| topic | seed systems seed quality seeds agricultural extension crops seed production |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10568/145539 |
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