Nigeria

Seed sector in Nigeria:

Unlike many countries in West Africa, the role of the private sector has been vital to the transition and growth of Nigeria’s seed industry. Private sector participation in breeding and variety release has led to an increase in its share of variety release in the country, which the public sector dominated until 2000. The private sector now constitutes 13% of variety releases in the seed market, with the public seed sector constituting the remaining 87%.

According to the National Agricultural Seeds Council (NASC), there are 157 registered seed companies in Nigeria, with the majority producing fewer than 1,000 metric tons of seeds annually. The Seed Entrepreneurs Association of Nigeria is the country’s main private seed trading body, with approximately 67 registered members.

There is no plant variety protection law currently operational in Nigeria, but the country has a biosafety agency law, which is considered a fast-track for commercialization of genetically modified (GM) crops. Although the country is a signatory to various treaties of the Food and Agriculture Organization and the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS), work is ongoing to develop a model plant variety law that will be in line with the UPOV 1991 convention. Confined testing of GM crops is currently underway.

The public seed sector is run by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD), the NASC, which works under the FMARD, and the Crop Varieties Registration and Release Committee (CVRRC). The CVRRC is responsible for varietal evaluation, release and registration in the national catalog of registered and released varieties.

The national agricultural research institutes (NARIs) play a significant role in the agriculture sector. NARIs, among others, produce foundation seed. Moreover, the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research is an important player in Nigeria, with ongoing activities through the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), and AfricaRice.

Observations

There are 24 index companies in Nigeria—the highest number in the region. Four companies are headquartered in Nigeria, four have breeding activities in the country, and 10 have testing locations.

Six companies have seed production activities in Nigeria, of which four involve smallholder farmers, while five companies have processing facilities in the country.

Of the 24 index companies, only nine accompany their sales activities with extension services. Technisem and Value Seeds stand out with 30 technical staff members involved in extension services.