The Access to Seeds Index is now part of the World Benchmarking Alliance. All indexes up to 2020 can be found here. New indexes and methodologies are published on the website of the WBA.
Stay here worldbenchmarkingalliance.org
The 2019 Access to Seeds Index is one
of the first Sustainable Development
Goals (SDGs) benchmarks published by
the World Benchmarking Alliance.
In 2019 the Access to Seeds Index presents
four rankings and in-depth studies that evaluate the performance of global seed companies as well as the regional industry in South and Southeast Asia and sub-Saharan Africa.
The index presents scorecards for each of the 62 companies that highlight a company’s strengths and weaknesses, presence and portfolio, leading practices and notable findings.
View All companies
The country profiles provide an overview of the
presence and activities of all 62 index companies
in each of the 65 countries in scope of the Access
to Seeds Index.
Eleven index companies report having a presence in Bolivia. Only Corteva Agriscience has a breeding location in the country, whereas Advanta is the only index company with production and processing activities. Only two companies provide extension services.
Fourteen index companies report having a presence in Colombia. Four companies have testing locations. No company reports breeding, production or processing activities. Only two companies provide extension services.
Fifteen index companies report having a presence in the Dominican Republic. Only KWS reports breeding activities, while Known-You Seed is the only company offering extension services. Four companies have testing locations.
Fourteen index companies report having a presence in Ecuador. Two companies, Advanta and Known-You Seed, have testing locations in the country. No index company invests in breeding, production or processing, and no company provides extension services.
Twelve index companies report having a presence in El Salvador. Only Limagrain has a breeding location in the country. Two companies report testing activities. No company is involved in extension services.
Thirteen index companies report having a presence in Guatemala. With activities in breeding, testing, production and extension, Bejo is the most active global seed company in the country. Two other companies are involved in breeding or production.
With only four seed companies present, Haiti has the lowest level of global seed industry activity in Latin America. No company is involved in breeding, testing, production, processing or extension services.
Fourteen index companies report having a presence in Honduras. Three companies have testing locations in the country. No company is involved in breeding, production, processing or extension services.
Nine index companies report having a presence in Nicaragua. Only one company reports that it is testing its portfolio in the country. No company is involved in breeding, production, processing or extension services.
Twelve index companies report having a presence in Paraguay. With activities in breeding, testing, production and extension, Bayer is the most active global seed company in the country. One company is involved in breeding and two others in production and extension.
With three global seed companies breeding in the country and five producing seed, Peru has the highest level of seed industry investments in Latin America. Although 15 companies report having a presence, no company provides extension services.
Five index companies report having a presence in Benin. East-West Seed is the only index company that has breeding activities, while Technisem is the only company providing extension services and producing seed in the country.
Seventeen index companies report having a presence in Burkina Faso, of which two are headquartered in the country. Two index companies partner in breeding, and five produce seed. Only two companies provide extension services.
Thirteen index companies report having a presence in Cameroon, of which one is headquartered in the country. Two index companies partner in breeding, while five produce seed. Only two companies provide extension services.
East-West Seed is the only index company with a presence in Central African Republic. No index company invests in breeding, production or extension in the country. Two national seed-producing cooperatives (not included in the index) produce and sell seed for field crops.
Only two index companies have a presence in Chad. No index company invests in breeding, production or extension in the country. Several national companies and cooperatives (not included in the index) produce and sell seed, but none of them is active in breeding.
Seventeen index companies have a presence in Côte d’Ivoire, of which one, BILOHF, is headquartered in the country. Only three offer extension services. No company reports breeding activities, and one produce seed and has processing facilities.
Eleven index companies have a presence in Democratic Republic of Congo, although only three provide extension services. Only one company reports breeding, production and processing activities. Several national companies (not included in the index) produce seed locally.
Technisem is the only index company with a presence in Equatorial Guinea, and it only sells seed. No index company invests in seed sector development. No data is available on national seed-producing actors.
Five index companies have a presence in Gabon. Most limit themselves to sales. Only Technisem reports testing and extension activities. Gabon is one of the few countries in the region where no seed-producing cooperatives could be identified.
Seventeen index companies have a presence in Ghana, but only two companies provide extension services. Seed Co is the only company with breeding activities. It also produces seed, as does Heritage Seed, which is headquartered in the country.
Five index companies have a presence in Guinea. None of them is involved in local breeding, production or extension services. Although several national seed companies and cooperatives are involved in seed production, none of them is involved in breeding.
Only one index company, Pop Vriend Seeds, has a presence in Guinea-Bissau. No index company and no national seed companies or cooperatives were found to be investing in seed production or breeding in the country.
Four index companies have a presence in Liberia. They limit themselves to sales. Several seed-producing cooperatives (not included in the index) produce seed locally. No seed companies or cooperatives were found to be involved in testing or breeding.
Sixteen index companies have a presence in Mali. However, only four accompany their sales activities with extension services. Mali-based Soprosa and Syngenta report breeding activities. Three index companies, which produce seed locally, are headquartered in the country.
Only four index companies have a presence in Mauritania. They limit themselves to sales. No index companies were found to be investing in activities such as breeding, testing, production or extension.
Eleven index companies have a presence in Niger, one of which is headquartered in the country. No company has breeding activities, but three have testing locations. Only one company produces seed locally as do several cooperatives (not included in the index).
With four index companies headquartered in the country and 20 others having a presence here, Nigeria is clearly a regional hotspot for the seed industry. Four companies have breeding activities, six produce seed and nine are involved in extension services.
Seven index companies have a presence in the Republic of the Congo. One of them provides extension services, but none produces seed. No index company and no national seed companies have breeding activities in the country.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence in Senegal. Two of them are headquartered in the country. Only three companies provide extension services and three have breeding activities. Senegal has a strong infrastructure of seed-producing cooperatives.
Six index companies have a presence in Sierra Leone. They limit themselves to sales. No index company breeds or produces seed in the country. However, several national seed companies and cooperatives are involved in local seed production.
Eight index companies have a presence in The Gambia, limiting themselves to sales activities. No index company breeds or produces seed in the country. However, several seed-producing cooperatives (not included in the index) produce seed locally.
Seven index companies have a presence in Togo. No company has breeding activities, but two have testing locations. Only Technisem is involved in extension. No index company produces seed locally, although several cooperatives (not included in the index) do as well.
Fourteen index companies report having a presence in Angola. Capstone Seeds and Seed Co are the only two companies both producing and testing seed in the country. No breeding activities or extension services were identified.
Ten index companies report having a presence in Botswana. None of them have breeding, seed production or processing activities. Only two companies with testing locations were identified. One company offers extension services, with two technical staff dedicated to training farmers.
Eight index companies are present in Burundi. Four are regionally based and four are globally active. Only two companies provide extension services and two report testing locations. Seed Co is the only company producing seed in the country.
Eight index companies report being present in Eswatini, but none have breeding or processing locations. Only one company has a seed production location and provides extension services, and one other has testing activities.
Seventeen index companies have a presence in Ethiopia. However, only four provide extension services. Two companies have breeding programs, five produce seed (with three involving smallholders) and two process seed. Homegrown Ethiopian Agricultural Business Corporation is the only company with activities that span the seed value chain.
Twenty-six index companies are present in Kenya, the highest number in the region, underscoring the country’s position as regional seed hub. Three index companies are headquartered here. Six companies breed, nine produce and six process seed. Kenya also has the broadest offering of extension services, provided by nine companies.
Six index companies are present in Lesotho – a low level of private sector activity. Furthermore, only one company carries out activities beyond sales, namely testing and extension. Local companies (not included in the index) do not provide evidence of activities beyond sales.
Ten index companies have a presence in Madagascar, alongside several local companies outside of the scope of the index. Only one index company has processing activities, and three produce seed. Two index companies, Technisem and Limagrain, have breeding activities.
Eleven index companies have a presence in Malawi, including Demeter Seed, which is headquartered in the country and is one of two companies offering extension services. Five companies produce seed, three of them involving smallholders. Syngenta is the only company with breeding activities.
Seventeen index companies have a presence in Mozambique, but only three offer extension services. Five companies have testing locations and one has a breeding program. Three companies produce seed, two of which involve smallholders.
Eleven index companies have a presence in Namibia, but no company reports providing extension services. Seed Co is the only company that produces seed and has a testing location in the country.
Thirteen index companies have a presence in Rwanda, with three of these providing extension services. Three companies test and produce seed and one processes seed. No companies report breeding programs.
Only three index companies have a presence in Somalia, one of the lowest numbers in the region. Darusalam Seed Company is headquartered here. It is the only company to report testing, production and processing activities. However, it has no breeding program of its own.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence in South Africa, but only two report providing extension services. South Africa is one of the seed hubs in the region, with ten companies having a breeding location and ten having seed production locations. Only one involves smallholders in production.
Of the nine index companies present in South Sudan, no company reports providing extension services. No company breeds in the country either and only one company has a testing location. A further two companies have seed production activities, although neither involve smallholders.
Twenty-three index companies report having a presence in Tanzania, a regional seed hub, with five companies having breeding and processing locations and nine having seed production locations. Nine companies provide extension services.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence in Uganda. Four are also headquartered here. Uganda is one of the regional seed hubs, with three companies having breeding locations, five producing seed (of which four involve smallholders) and five processing seed.
Twenty index companies are present in Zambia, including Zamseed, which is headquartered here. Seven companies produce seed although only two involve smallholders. Four companies have breeding locations, with four in total testing and processing seed. Five companies provide extension services.
Nineteen index companies report having a presence in Zimbabwe, but only three provide extension services. Four companies have a breeding location and three produce seed. All three involve smallholder farmers in seed production activities. Four companies report having processing locations.
Nine index companies report having a presence in Afghanistan. They are only involved in the sale of vegetable crops. None of the companies in the index have seed production, testing, breeding, processing or extension activities.
Twenty-three index companies are present in Bangladesh, with most of the companies having testing locations. The Bangladeshi companies BRAC Seed and Agro Enterprise and Lal Teer Seed have complete seed value chains in the country, from breeding to extension.
Twelve index companies report having a presence in Cambodia, with four having testing locations and three offering extension activities. National seed actors (not included in the index) carry out breeding and production activities.
Twenty-six index companies report having a presence in India, with eight headquartered in the country. Companies have complete seed value chains in the country, making it a regional seed hub. India is the only index country participating in OECD seed schemes.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence in Indonesia, with three companies having breeding, testing, seed production, processing, sales and extension activities along the entire seed value chain. The country is developing into a competitive seed hub.
Ten index companies have a presence in Laos, selling seed for both field crops and vegetables. However, seed business activities are limited. Two companies have testing locations, but only one company offers extension services.
Fourteen index companies report having a presence in Myanmar. None of the companies report breeding locations. Six companies indicate having testing locations, but other activities such as seed production, processing and extension are limited.
Eighteen index companies report having a presence in Nepal. While six companies indicate having testing locations, Lal Teer Seed is the only company that has a full seed value chain including breeding activities.
Twenty-two index companies report having a presence in Pakistan. Seed production is carried out by three companies with limited involvement of smallholder farmers. Some local seed companies (not included in the index) carry out breeding and production.
Nineteen index companies report having a presence in Sri Lanka, with eight having testing locations. Only two companies offer extension services. Some local companies (not included in the index) produce seed in the country, although Advanta is the only index company to do so.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence Thailand. Most of the companies carry out breeding, testing and seed production, making the country one of the seed hubs in the region. Less than half of the companies offer extension services.
Eighteen index companies report having a presence in the Philippines. Eight companies indicate having testing locations. Six have breeding locations, four have processing locations and six produce seed in the country, making it one of the seed hubs in the region.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence in Vietnam. It can be considered a seed hub, with seed production and breeding activities being carried out by nine and six companies respectively. Only six companies offer extension services.
Eleven index companies report having a presence in Bolivia. Only Corteva Agriscience has a breeding location in the country, whereas Advanta is the only index company with production and processing activities. Only two companies provide extension services.
Fourteen index companies report having a presence in Colombia. Four companies have testing locations. No company reports breeding, production or processing activities. Only two companies provide extension services.
Fifteen index companies report having a presence in the Dominican Republic. Only KWS reports breeding activities, while Known-You Seed is the only company offering extension services. Four companies have testing locations.
Fourteen index companies report having a presence in Ecuador. Two companies, Advanta and Known-You Seed, have testing locations in the country. No index company invests in breeding, production or processing, and no company provides extension services.
Twelve index companies report having a presence in El Salvador. Only Limagrain has a breeding location in the country. Two companies report testing activities. No company is involved in extension services.
Thirteen index companies report having a presence in Guatemala. With activities in breeding, testing, production and extension, Bejo is the most active global seed company in the country. Two other companies are involved in breeding or production.
With only four seed companies present, Haiti has the lowest level of global seed industry activity in Latin America. No company is involved in breeding, testing, production, processing or extension services.
Fourteen index companies report having a presence in Honduras. Three companies have testing locations in the country. No company is involved in breeding, production, processing or extension services.
Nine index companies report having a presence in Nicaragua. Only one company reports that it is testing its portfolio in the country. No company is involved in breeding, production, processing or extension services.
Twelve index companies report having a presence in Paraguay. With activities in breeding, testing, production and extension, Bayer is the most active global seed company in the country. One company is involved in breeding and two others in production and extension.
With three global seed companies breeding in the country and five producing seed, Peru has the highest level of seed industry investments in Latin America. Although 15 companies report having a presence, no company provides extension services.
Five index companies report having a presence in Benin. East-West Seed is the only index company that has breeding activities, while Technisem is the only company providing extension services and producing seed in the country.
Seventeen index companies report having a presence in Burkina Faso, of which two are headquartered in the country. Two index companies partner in breeding, and five produce seed. Only two companies provide extension services.
Thirteen index companies report having a presence in Cameroon, of which one is headquartered in the country. Two index companies partner in breeding, while five produce seed. Only two companies provide extension services.
East-West Seed is the only index company with a presence in Central African Republic. No index company invests in breeding, production or extension in the country. Two national seed-producing cooperatives (not included in the index) produce and sell seed for field crops.
Only two index companies have a presence in Chad. No index company invests in breeding, production or extension in the country. Several national companies and cooperatives (not included in the index) produce and sell seed, but none of them is active in breeding.
Seventeen index companies have a presence in Côte d’Ivoire, of which one, BILOHF, is headquartered in the country. Only three offer extension services. No company reports breeding activities, and one produce seed and has processing facilities.
Eleven index companies have a presence in Democratic Republic of Congo, although only three provide extension services. Only one company reports breeding, production and processing activities. Several national companies (not included in the index) produce seed locally.
Technisem is the only index company with a presence in Equatorial Guinea, and it only sells seed. No index company invests in seed sector development. No data is available on national seed-producing actors.
Five index companies have a presence in Gabon. Most limit themselves to sales. Only Technisem reports testing and extension activities. Gabon is one of the few countries in the region where no seed-producing cooperatives could be identified.
Seventeen index companies have a presence in Ghana, but only two companies provide extension services. Seed Co is the only company with breeding activities. It also produces seed, as does Heritage Seed, which is headquartered in the country.
Five index companies have a presence in Guinea. None of them is involved in local breeding, production or extension services. Although several national seed companies and cooperatives are involved in seed production, none of them is involved in breeding.
Only one index company, Pop Vriend Seeds, has a presence in Guinea-Bissau. No index company and no national seed companies or cooperatives were found to be investing in seed production or breeding in the country.
Four index companies have a presence in Liberia. They limit themselves to sales. Several seed-producing cooperatives (not included in the index) produce seed locally. No seed companies or cooperatives were found to be involved in testing or breeding.
Sixteen index companies have a presence in Mali. However, only four accompany their sales activities with extension services. Mali-based Soprosa and Syngenta report breeding activities. Three index companies, which produce seed locally, are headquartered in the country.
Only four index companies have a presence in Mauritania. They limit themselves to sales. No index companies were found to be investing in activities such as breeding, testing, production or extension.
Eleven index companies have a presence in Niger, one of which is headquartered in the country. No company has breeding activities, but three have testing locations. Only one company produces seed locally as do several cooperatives (not included in the index).
With four index companies headquartered in the country and 20 others having a presence here, Nigeria is clearly a regional hotspot for the seed industry. Four companies have breeding activities, six produce seed and nine are involved in extension services.
Seven index companies have a presence in the Republic of the Congo. One of them provides extension services, but none produces seed. No index company and no national seed companies have breeding activities in the country.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence in Senegal. Two of them are headquartered in the country. Only three companies provide extension services and three have breeding activities. Senegal has a strong infrastructure of seed-producing cooperatives.
Six index companies have a presence in Sierra Leone. They limit themselves to sales. No index company breeds or produces seed in the country. However, several national seed companies and cooperatives are involved in local seed production.
Eight index companies have a presence in The Gambia, limiting themselves to sales activities. No index company breeds or produces seed in the country. However, several seed-producing cooperatives (not included in the index) produce seed locally.
Seven index companies have a presence in Togo. No company has breeding activities, but two have testing locations. Only Technisem is involved in extension. No index company produces seed locally, although several cooperatives (not included in the index) do as well.
Fourteen index companies report having a presence in Angola. Capstone Seeds and Seed Co are the only two companies both producing and testing seed in the country. No breeding activities or extension services were identified.
Ten index companies report having a presence in Botswana. None of them have breeding, seed production or processing activities. Only two companies with testing locations were identified. One company offers extension services, with two technical staff dedicated to training farmers.
Eight index companies are present in Burundi. Four are regionally based and four are globally active. Only two companies provide extension services and two report testing locations. Seed Co is the only company producing seed in the country.
Eight index companies report being present in Eswatini, but none have breeding or processing locations. Only one company has a seed production location and provides extension services, and one other has testing activities.
Seventeen index companies have a presence in Ethiopia. However, only four provide extension services. Two companies have breeding programs, five produce seed (with three involving smallholders) and two process seed. Homegrown Ethiopian Agricultural Business Corporation is the only company with activities that span the seed value chain.
Twenty-six index companies are present in Kenya, the highest number in the region, underscoring the country’s position as regional seed hub. Three index companies are headquartered here. Six companies breed, nine produce and six process seed. Kenya also has the broadest offering of extension services, provided by nine companies.
Six index companies are present in Lesotho – a low level of private sector activity. Furthermore, only one company carries out activities beyond sales, namely testing and extension. Local companies (not included in the index) do not provide evidence of activities beyond sales.
Ten index companies have a presence in Madagascar, alongside several local companies outside of the scope of the index. Only one index company has processing activities, and three produce seed. Two index companies, Technisem and Limagrain, have breeding activities.
Eleven index companies have a presence in Malawi, including Demeter Seed, which is headquartered in the country and is one of two companies offering extension services. Five companies produce seed, three of them involving smallholders. Syngenta is the only company with breeding activities.
Seventeen index companies have a presence in Mozambique, but only three offer extension services. Five companies have testing locations and one has a breeding program. Three companies produce seed, two of which involve smallholders.
Eleven index companies have a presence in Namibia, but no company reports providing extension services. Seed Co is the only company that produces seed and has a testing location in the country.
Thirteen index companies have a presence in Rwanda, with three of these providing extension services. Three companies test and produce seed and one processes seed. No companies report breeding programs.
Only three index companies have a presence in Somalia, one of the lowest numbers in the region. Darusalam Seed Company is headquartered here. It is the only company to report testing, production and processing activities. However, it has no breeding program of its own.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence in South Africa, but only two report providing extension services. South Africa is one of the seed hubs in the region, with ten companies having a breeding location and ten having seed production locations. Only one involves smallholders in production.
Of the nine index companies present in South Sudan, no company reports providing extension services. No company breeds in the country either and only one company has a testing location. A further two companies have seed production activities, although neither involve smallholders.
Twenty-three index companies report having a presence in Tanzania, a regional seed hub, with five companies having breeding and processing locations and nine having seed production locations. Nine companies provide extension services.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence in Uganda. Four are also headquartered here. Uganda is one of the regional seed hubs, with three companies having breeding locations, five producing seed (of which four involve smallholders) and five processing seed.
Twenty index companies are present in Zambia, including Zamseed, which is headquartered here. Seven companies produce seed although only two involve smallholders. Four companies have breeding locations, with four in total testing and processing seed. Five companies provide extension services.
Nineteen index companies report having a presence in Zimbabwe, but only three provide extension services. Four companies have a breeding location and three produce seed. All three involve smallholder farmers in seed production activities. Four companies report having processing locations.
Nine index companies report having a presence in Afghanistan. They are only involved in the sale of vegetable crops. None of the companies in the index have seed production, testing, breeding, processing or extension activities.
Twenty-three index companies are present in Bangladesh, with most of the companies having testing locations. The Bangladeshi companies BRAC Seed and Agro Enterprise and Lal Teer Seed have complete seed value chains in the country, from breeding to extension.
Twelve index companies report having a presence in Cambodia, with four having testing locations and three offering extension activities. National seed actors (not included in the index) carry out breeding and production activities.
Twenty-six index companies report having a presence in India, with eight headquartered in the country. Companies have complete seed value chains in the country, making it a regional seed hub. India is the only index country participating in OECD seed schemes.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence in Indonesia, with three companies having breeding, testing, seed production, processing, sales and extension activities along the entire seed value chain. The country is developing into a competitive seed hub.
Ten index companies have a presence in Laos, selling seed for both field crops and vegetables. However, seed business activities are limited. Two companies have testing locations, but only one company offers extension services.
Fourteen index companies report having a presence in Myanmar. None of the companies report breeding locations. Six companies indicate having testing locations, but other activities such as seed production, processing and extension are limited.
Eighteen index companies report having a presence in Nepal. While six companies indicate having testing locations, Lal Teer Seed is the only company that has a full seed value chain including breeding activities.
Twenty-two index companies report having a presence in Pakistan. Seed production is carried out by three companies with limited involvement of smallholder farmers. Some local seed companies (not included in the index) carry out breeding and production.
Nineteen index companies report having a presence in Sri Lanka, with eight having testing locations. Only two companies offer extension services. Some local companies (not included in the index) produce seed in the country, although Advanta is the only index company to do so.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence Thailand. Most of the companies carry out breeding, testing and seed production, making the country one of the seed hubs in the region. Less than half of the companies offer extension services.
Eighteen index companies report having a presence in the Philippines. Eight companies indicate having testing locations. Six have breeding locations, four have processing locations and six produce seed in the country, making it one of the seed hubs in the region.
Twenty-one index companies report having a presence in Vietnam. It can be considered a seed hub, with seed production and breeding activities being carried out by nine and six companies respectively. Only six companies offer extension services.
