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In recent years, many farmers in Senegal and West Africa have taken up seed production. In Senegal, not only are young people increasingly involved in the sector, but so are women. With the bottom line on the rise, industry players are seeing their decisions vindicated.

Between 2013-2017, CORAF implemented the West Africa Seed Program (WASP) in selected West African countries, including Senegal. The United States Agency for International Development provided financial resources for the program.

Although the program has long since come to an end, socio-economic results are increasingly showing the opening up of new business opportunities for beneficiaries in the field of improved and quality seed multiplication.

Adama Nbodj is a farmer from Nbodjene, a village in the Saint Louis valley. He began producing rice seed following the many training courses he received as part of the WASP program.

Before the WASP program, Adama didn't produce seeds. Like most young people in his community, he helped his father in the family fields.

But soon after receiving training and quality seeds, Adama started growing rice seeds on two hectares of land. That was seven years ago. The seeds were supplied by AfricaRice and the Institut sénégalais de recherche agricole (ISRA).

The first revenues convinced him once and for all of the sector's profitability. Today, Adama produces over 60 tonnes of rice seeds of different varieties every year, and sells them exclusively to ISRA under his contract with this state structure.

"Every farming season, I earn more than 5 million FCFA (10,000 USD). I can easily take care of my family with this amount of money," says Adama.

Like Adama, Cheick Camara, a 30-year-old seed producer, started out in the seed business not so long ago. Based in Paoskoto, a town in central Senegal, some 250 km from the capital, Cheick produces mainly millet, maize and groundnut seeds. At first, Cheick produced around 5 tonnes of seed, but today he produces over 22 tonnes, including 10 tonnes of groundnuts, 7 tonnes of maize and 5 tonnes of millet.

"Before, I used to earn around 600,000 FCFA (1,200 USD) per farming season. Today, I earn at least two million FCFA (4,000 USD). With this money, I feed my family, I pay for my children's schooling and I've been able to build my house," says Cheick.

Today, Cheick has expanded his production to 11 hectares and employs five seasonal workers. For him, agriculture, and especially seed production, is a profitable sector for young people.

"If you follow good practice, you can earn enough to live a decent life."

Adama and Cheick would never have seen the light of day in the seed sector without the intervention of CORAF.

WASP has facilitated farmers' and growers' access to quality seeds, and has also helped harmonize seed regulations in 17 West African countries, including Chad and Mauritania.

Their experiences show that CORAF's efforts have paid off in terms of production, marketing and access to quality seeds for poor small-scale farmers...

A great opportunity for women producers

CORAF's actions in the seed sector in recent years have also had an impact on women seed producers in Senegal.

Aminata Diouf is a seed producer in Paoskoto. Proudly showing off her two-hectare field of peanut seeds, she cultivates four hectares, including two hectares of peanuts, one hectare of maize and one hectare of millet. Aminata has been producing seeds for 12 years, but has had great difficulty in accessing quality seeds. She lacked knowledge of techniques and standards, and had low yields.

"Before, I used to produce less than a ton of seed per season, but after WASP's capacity building, I now produce around four tons of peanuts, 1.5 tons of millet and 3 tons of corn," according to Aminata.

"The training I received on best seed production practices changed everything. Thanks to this program, I was able to obtain quality seeds and fertilizers, which significantly increased my yields."

In the past, she had an income of 70-100 thousand FCFA (130-200 USD) depending on the season, but today she has a profit of 600 to 800 thousand FCFA (1,100-1500 USD) per season. This enables her to be financially independent. Thanks to this income, she has been able to provide for her family.

Like Aminata, many women farmers are now involved in quality seed multiplication in Senegal. Although seed production is a promising sector for women farmers, they generally face difficulties in accessing land. They find it hard to increase production despite higher yields and higher incomes.

Read also:

• Harmonization of regional seed regulations: First signs of prosperity for private companies
• NAFASO: the key to hope in West Africa's seed industry
• How strengthening seed alliances benefits smallholders in West Africa