Seed provision and dryland crops in the semiarid regions of Eastern Kenya

Over the last two decades, several seed-related programs have been initiated in eastern Kenya to improve farmers’ access to quality seeds of dryland cereals and legumes. They are provided during two occasions, regular and emergency times. But very often, the formal supply mechanisms limit their role...

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Autores principales: Nagarajan, Latha, Audi, Patrick, Jones, Richard, Smale, Melinda
Formato: Artículo preliminar
Lenguaje:Inglés
Publicado: International Food Policy Research Institute 2007
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://hdl.handle.net/10568/160242
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author Nagarajan, Latha
Audi, Patrick
Jones, Richard
Smale, Melinda
author_browse Audi, Patrick
Jones, Richard
Nagarajan, Latha
Smale, Melinda
author_facet Nagarajan, Latha
Audi, Patrick
Jones, Richard
Smale, Melinda
author_sort Nagarajan, Latha
collection Repository of Agricultural Research Outputs (CGSpace)
description Over the last two decades, several seed-related programs have been initiated in eastern Kenya to improve farmers’ access to quality seeds of dryland cereals and legumes. They are provided during two occasions, regular and emergency times. But very often, the formal supply mechanisms limit their role in provision of seeds other than maize. In the absence of any formalized systems of seed provision for other dryland crops, such as sorghum and pigeon pea, farmers have preferred local markets for their seed needs, especially during distress periods. Here we have examined the role of various seed-intervention programs in eastern Kenya, along with the strengths and weaknesses of each program. We have also underscored the importance of local markets and their actors in meeting the needs for non-maize and bean seeds in these marginal environments. For this purpose, detailed, informal interviews were conducted during October–December 2005 with all the stakeholders, namely public and private institutions and vendors in eight major local markets in eastern Kenya. The results of the study call for synergies between existing formal (private, public, and other development initiative) systems and informal (local market) seed systems to enhance crop yields and the diversity of dryland cereals and legumes through effective seed-supply interventions.
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spelling CGSpace1602422025-11-06T06:52:49Z Seed provision and dryland crops in the semiarid regions of Eastern Kenya Nagarajan, Latha Audi, Patrick Jones, Richard Smale, Melinda seed systems seed industry biodiversity agricultural extension drylands Over the last two decades, several seed-related programs have been initiated in eastern Kenya to improve farmers’ access to quality seeds of dryland cereals and legumes. They are provided during two occasions, regular and emergency times. But very often, the formal supply mechanisms limit their role in provision of seeds other than maize. In the absence of any formalized systems of seed provision for other dryland crops, such as sorghum and pigeon pea, farmers have preferred local markets for their seed needs, especially during distress periods. Here we have examined the role of various seed-intervention programs in eastern Kenya, along with the strengths and weaknesses of each program. We have also underscored the importance of local markets and their actors in meeting the needs for non-maize and bean seeds in these marginal environments. For this purpose, detailed, informal interviews were conducted during October–December 2005 with all the stakeholders, namely public and private institutions and vendors in eight major local markets in eastern Kenya. The results of the study call for synergies between existing formal (private, public, and other development initiative) systems and informal (local market) seed systems to enhance crop yields and the diversity of dryland cereals and legumes through effective seed-supply interventions. 2007 2024-11-21T09:50:19Z 2024-11-21T09:50:19Z Working Paper https://hdl.handle.net/10568/160242 en Open Access application/pdf International Food Policy Research Institute Nagarajan, Latha; Audi, Patrick; Jones, Richard; Smale, Melinda. Seed provision and dryland crops in the semiarid regions of Eastern Kenya. IFPRI Discussion Paper 738. International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI). https://hdl.handle.net/10568/160242
spellingShingle seed systems
seed industry
biodiversity
agricultural extension
drylands
Nagarajan, Latha
Audi, Patrick
Jones, Richard
Smale, Melinda
Seed provision and dryland crops in the semiarid regions of Eastern Kenya
title Seed provision and dryland crops in the semiarid regions of Eastern Kenya
title_full Seed provision and dryland crops in the semiarid regions of Eastern Kenya
title_fullStr Seed provision and dryland crops in the semiarid regions of Eastern Kenya
title_full_unstemmed Seed provision and dryland crops in the semiarid regions of Eastern Kenya
title_short Seed provision and dryland crops in the semiarid regions of Eastern Kenya
title_sort seed provision and dryland crops in the semiarid regions of eastern kenya
topic seed systems
seed industry
biodiversity
agricultural extension
drylands
url https://hdl.handle.net/10568/160242
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