News

• Mr. Director of Agriculture of the ECOWAS Commission
• Mr. Director of Agriculture of the UEMOA Commission
• Mr General Manager of INSAH / CILSS
• Mr. Director of Economic Growth, USAID/West Africa
• Hub Rural Executive Director
• Representatives of Partner Institutions (Syngenta Foundation, IITA, AfricaRice, ICRISAT, ROPPA, AFSTA, FARA, AGRA, GNIS, IFDC, USAID, KNUST, World Bank)
• Dear Colleagues,
• Ladies and Gentlemen

First of all, I'd like to welcome you to Dakar for those of you who don't live here, and especially to the CORAF/WECARD Executive Secretariat.

I would also like to express my satisfaction at the fact that the Consortium's third annual meeting is being held at a crucial time, when ECOWAP+10 and the new generation of regional and national agricultural investment plans are in full development.

Finally, I would like to express my deep gratitude to the regional economic communities (ECOWAS and UEMOA) and to CILSS for the trust placed in my organization, CORAF/WECARD, which they have entrusted with the implementation of the West African seed program, in close collaboration with the National Seed Committees (NSCs) of the 17 countries of the ECOWAS-UEMOA-CILSS area and the West African Regional Seed Committee, for which CORAF/WECARD provides the secretariat.

Implementing this seed program requires everyone's support, which is why the Consortium of Partners (made up of ECOWAS, UEMOA, CILSS, Hub-Rural, CGIAR, AFSTA and ROPPA) is meeting today for the third time.

Ladies and Gentlemen

I would therefore like to pay tribute to the efforts made by this consortium, particularly in drawing up the strategy that enabled it to obtain a grant from the USAID Mission for West Africa in 2012 to implement the PSAO/WASP.

Since then, the Consortium of WASP Partners has constantly contributed to the effective implementation of the Harmonized Rules in the ECOWAS-UEMOA-CILSS region, through the formulation of recommendations and sustained support over the past five years.

This common front will result in improved and more harmonized governance of the regulatory system between the countries of the ECOWAS-UEMOA-CILSS zone.

Ladies and Gentlemen

CORAF/WECARD is pleased to inform you, as a reminder, that the level of implementation of regional regulations doubled between 2013 and 2015, rising from 41% to 84%. No stranger to this was the successful launch of COASem-CRSU and ASIWA in Abidjan in August 2015. These two bodies have made a major contribution to raising awareness of regulation and the importance of the seed industry in the region.

All these efforts have led to a significant increase in the production and distribution of quality seeds, particularly varieties adapted to the context of climate change. Indeed, the volume of seeds of the main cereals and legumes supplied to farmers in the region has increased sixfold, while certified seed coverage has risen from 11% to 25% over the same period.

Positive developments in the seed sector have also contributed to building an endogenous capacity to respond to regional challenges. We have seen this through the rapid seed assistance initiative for countries hit by the Ebola virus (Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone), which has made it possible to supply over 10,000 tonnes of quality seed from the region for the benefit of over 2 million food-insecure people in these countries.

Despite these successes, challenges remain in implementing the regulations, promoting the Seed Alliance, improving the supply of basic and certified seeds, and strengthening the private sector.

Ladies and Gentlemen

Reflections at this Third Annual Meeting of the Consortium of Partners should focus on pooling efforts and strengthening synergies between stakeholders in the seed sector, and more generally the agricultural inputs sector, in West Africa. The collaboration between CORAF/WECARD's PSAO/WASP and IFDC's Fertilizer Program for West Africa (PEAO/WAFP) should be strengthened. This will be facilitated by the signing, last month in Lomé, of a framework collaboration agreement between CORAF/WECARD and IFDC. The Consortium of Partners is also expected to converge on the planning of phase II of the WASP.

On that note, ladies and gentlemen, I wish you every success in your work.

Thank you for your kind attention

Dakar, October 20, 2016