Quality seed potato for improved yields: A win for smallholder farmers

In Rwanda, access to quality seed for improved and market preferred varieties is a challenge. For a country which depends on agriculture for sustenance, this poses a great threat to food security and means of livelihoods. Low quality seeds lead to low yields or even crop failure. Quality seed leads to increased productivity by about 50% as it improves their ability to resist pests and diseases.

Cognizant of this, the International Potato Centre (CIP) and Syngenta Foundation East Africa (SFEA) with a funding from United States Agency for International Development (USAID), has implemented the Partnership for Seed Technology Transfer in Africa (PASTTA 2) project in Rwanda in collaboration with the Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB) and Rwanda Inspectorate, Competition and Consumer Protection Authority (RICA). The two-year project begun in October 2022 and will end in December 2024. The project aimed at enhancing the production and uptake of quality seeds of robust varieties. Crop improvement is one of CIP science goals and focuses on developing and delivering superior crop varieties resilient to environmental stressors.

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