BY SIFISO NHLABATSI
EZULWINI — Agriculture Minister Mandla Tshawuka has called on African countries to move beyond being consumers of agricultural technologies developed elsewhere and build the continent’s capacity to develop, produce and export its own seed, knowledge and agricultural technologies.
Tshawuka said Africa’s agricultural transformation would remain constrained if countries continued to depend excessively on external sources for critical agricultural inputs and technologies.
“ Africa should not only be a consumer of agricultural technologies developed elsewhere. We must increasingly become developers, producers and exporters of agricultural knowledge, technologies and seed,” he said.
The Minister was speaking during the opening of the Senior Officials Meeting held as part of the Africa Seed Summit in Ezulwini.
He said investment in the seed sector should go beyond the production of seed to include research and innovation, African breeders, scientists and research institutions.
According to Tshawuka, African countries also need investment in seed multiplication, processing, storage, certification and distribution, as well as farmers and agro-dealers.
He said the continent needed to develop and deploy seed varieties suited to its own climatic conditions, farming systems, nutritional requirements and markets.
Tshawuka said this was particularly important as climate change continued to intensify droughts, floods, heat stress, pests and diseases across the continent.
He said Africa had vast arable land, diverse agro-ecological systems, a youthful population, growing markets and increasing demand for food, but continued to face significant challenges in achieving food and nutrition security.
“The seed sector must be recognised as an important strategic element for Africa’s food systems and economic development,” Tshawuka said.
He said African countries should strengthen cooperation in research, technology development and seed systems, while reducing dependence that could undermine the continent’s agricultural sovereignty.
Tshawuka further called for stronger coordination between national governments, the African Union, regional economic communities, research institutions, development partners and the private sector.
He said Africa also needed appropriate regional approaches to seed regulation, variety development, certification, quality assurance and the cross-border movement of seed.
At the same time, he stressed that such systems should safeguard the interests of farmers and national agricultural systems.
Tshawuka said international partnerships remained important, but should focus on strengthening African capacity, mobilising investment, transferring knowledge and technology and building sustainable institutions.
He said partnerships should enable African countries to develop durable systems rather than create permanent dependency.
The Minister said Eswatini was ready to work with African and international partners to strengthen seed systems, promote research and innovation, encourage private-sector participation and improve farmers’ access to quality seed.
He said Africa had the resources, people, markets and knowledge to feed itself, but needed stronger institutions, greater coordination, investment and political commitment.
#AfricaSeedSummit #SeedSystems #Agriculture #FoodSecurity #SeedSovereignty #AfricanAgriculture #Eswatini PositiveNews
