18 I EUROPEAN SEED I EUROPEAN-SEED.COM Bob Shuma Inspectorate Services (KEPHIS) to pro- duce, process and/or market seed in Kenya, and includes service providers. To date, STAK has a membership of 36. It is our vision to Champion a Competitive Seed Industry for Food Security. The mis- sion is to enable our members grow their businesses while contributing to national and regional food security through infor- mation, food security and service,” he says. STAK is a member of the African Seed Trade Association (AFSTA, www. asfta.org) and the global International Seed Federation (ISF, www.worldseed. org). Onduu says that on an annual basis these two organizations provide a forum for Kenya seed companies to engage in business networking meetings. “This year for example, two seed companies (i.e. Kenya Seed and Simlaw Seeds) took part in the ISF meeting at Brisbane, Australia from the 3-6, June where the companies made business contacts with seed com- panies operating in Europe. The AFSTA Congress in Egypt this year also provided such an opportunity where seed compa- nies made business contacts. Some of the Kenyan Seed companies that attended included Agri Seed Co, Monsanto, Quali Basic Seed Company and Bayer among others,” he adds. Most of the Kenyan seed business with Europe is largely on vegetables and potato from Netherlands. “The challenges with vegetables are largely on varietal purity, while potato from The Netherlands has challenges related to diseases. There are broad issues to do with Plant Import Permits (PIPs) which seed companies in Kenya find long and arduous and would have made ease of seed business if these were faster and efficient,” Onduu indi- cates, adding that this is an opportunity that can be tapped to enhance the seed business between Kenya and Europe if it is streamlined. “This would increase business trade in vegetables; while solv- ing challenges related to potato is a big opportunity for seed companies since potato has been identified as a priority crop in the Government’s BIG FOUR Agenda priority on food security. The big four priorities are: manufacturing, food security and nutrition, providing univer- sal health coverage and affordable hous- ing,” he concludes. GHANA The National Seed Trade Association of Ghana (NASTAG) is a nascent asso- ciation formed in 2016 and launched in August 2017 as an amalgamation of all seed sector players with a vision to promote the growth of the seed indus- try through improvement in members businesses and the use of quality seeds for improved livelihoods says Augusta Nyamadi-Clottey, Executive Secretary of NASTAG. “Seed remains the heart of agri- culture in any part of the world. In Ghana the importance and use of quality seeds by farmers for maximum yield has taken the centre stage in recent times with the private seed sector playing a significant role. Several efforts to promote the use of certified seeds have proven not too suc- cessful,” she says. However, in recent times, the signifi- cant role that seeds play, coupled with the application of the right agronomic prac- tices in enhancing productivity, has pushed industry players, led by the government, to put much emphasis on enhancing the seed sector in Ghana. This is done mainly through local seed production, increased availability, accessibility, affordability and utilization to optimize yields and to meet international standards. Since its establishment, NASTAG has joined the African Seed Trade Association (AFSTA) through which it has gained access to an international platform at annual congresses to inter- act with some European seed and seed related companies to discuss some busi- ness deals says Thomas Havor, President of the Association. “It is worth mentioning that through this and other interactions, two of such companies – PETKUS and World Vegetable Centre – have visited Ghana and specifically NASTAG to dis- cuss business deals in promoting the seed sector in Ghana.” Further to the above, interaction with Europe by member seed companies continues to increase as the association continuously links up with some of the European companies that participated in the AFSTA annual congress, to establish business links. Hybrid maize seed mul- tiplication and vegetable seeds impor- tation through these business linkages are gaining grounds. “This, to some extent, is as a result of the government’s flagship programme, ‘Planting for Food and Jobs (PFJ)’ campaign that seems to hype the use of quality certified seeds at subsidized rates. This is an opportunity which members and for that matter the private seed sector players are leveraging to enhance the market for certified seeds supply resulting in increased business deals with Europe,” Clottey shares. For Ghana in particular to attain its seed sector full potential, it will require the following: • Accelerating the passage of the Plant Breeders Rights Bill for researchers to protect their intellectual property and for research institutes to expand their business horizons. • Public Private Partnerships (PPP) to refurbish and manage seed infra- structure while working assiduously to promote private seed processing facilities • Investment financing for seed enterprises to take advantage of oppor- tunities from Europe to expand the seed businesses • The introduction of seed certifica- tion at the Early Generation Seed level to enhance the quality of breeder and foun- dation seeds which are the basis for the seed multiplication process Havor concludes: “Ghana has its Plants and Fertilizer Act 2010, Act 803, a well-developed National Seed Policy and its Implementations Plan (The National Seed Plan) as well as its regulatory frame- work, in which both public and private sector actors play very significant roles. The operationalization and implementa- tion of the seed protocols in an effective and efficient manner should lead to the accelerated growth of the seed sector in Ghana to contribute to Africa’s food secu- rity goals and overall progress.” Augusta Nyamadi-Clottey