Leveraging ADAs to Strengthen Seed Systems and Link Farmers to Markets in Zambia. 29 February, 2024

This series featured James Nguluwe, Agriculture Coordinator for the AID-I Project at Catholic Relief Services (CRS) in Zambia and Japhet Laizer, the Program Officer at Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) in Tanzania.
The first presentation “Leveraging Agriculture Development Agents (ADA) to Strengthen Seed Systems and Link Farmers to Markets in Zambia,” by CRS highlighted the ADAs’ critical role in accelerating local access to legume seed within smallholder farming communities through the seed production. The ADAs’ multiply and supply seed using the out-grower model to farmers as well as playing a role in aggregation of grain from farmers after harvest for the output markets. Currently CRS has 340 ADAs under the AID-I project in Eastern Zambia of which 36% are women. ADAs also play a critical role in providing extension services and hosting demo plots to showcase performance of various seed varieties. To ensure quality control, The national Seed Control and Certification Institute (SCCI) is involved in training of ADAs in seed production and undertakes seed inspections at various stages of seed production, including testing and certification.
AGRA made the second presentation on “Leveraging Village Based Advisors (VBAs) to Strengthen Seed Systems and Link Farmers to Markets in Tanzania.” With Africa’s high extension service provider to farmer ratios ranging from 1:2000 to 1:110,000 against the recommended ratio of 1:400 to 1:700, the presentation highlighted on how VBAs play a critical role in the last mile delivery approach through private sector led extension services including input agro-dealership and output aggregation within small farming communities. The VBA model helps to mitigate the challenge of extension service provider to farmer ration resulting in better access to expert information and advice on agricultural technologies which helps to accelerate smallholder productivity, poverty reduction and increased access to finance and market linkages for smallholder farmers.