Esnati Mutembedza (54), a seed custodian from Goromonzi district in Mashonaland East province is calling all small-scale farmers to value indigenous seeds, fight for food sovereignty, and refuse to be swayed by short-lived financial gains.
Esnati made this call during a follow up training on Participatory Plant Breeding (PPB) organized by PELUM Zimbabwe under the Zimbabwe Seed Sovereignty Programme (ZSSP). The purpose of the PPB training was to give small-scale farmers and the programme officers that support their work in-depth knowledge and skills to be able to implement PPB on their own. The training also interrogated motives and impacts of seed companies on the food systems.
“We grew up eating our own food, growing and saving our own seed. We were food sovereign and prosperous but big seed companies came and captured our seed systems,” said Esnati.
Manata Jeko (49), one of the trainers on PPB working with ZSSP technical partner, Community Technology Development Trust (CTDT) affirmed Esnati’s claims. Manata said big companies control the seed industry by patenting seeds. Once seed is patent, breeders have exclusive rights over the seed.
“Depending on hybrid seeds erodes the self-sufficient capacity of small-scale farmers. It destroys the opportunity of a home to be food secure and food sovereign,” said Manata.
Manata urged stakeholders to support small-scale farmers by strengthening their capacity to grow, select and save farm saved seeds, adopt ecologically sound practices, establishing community seed banks, and creating an enabling environment that recognizes and supports farmer managed seed systems.
Blessing Wititi (30) is a seed grower from Gutu district who participated in the PPB training. Blessing said the ZSSP initiative is enabling women to reclaim their ancestral duties as seed custodians and food producers.
“By learning PPB and all its facets, we are able to take ownership of our seeds. When the economy is not performing well, such as a time like this, we know we have our own seed and food to sustain us. This training has shown us that we don’t have to depend on hybrid maize and sourcing expensive synthetic fertilisers that harm our soils," said Blessing.
Another participant from Bikita in Ward 24, Ivy Mutingwende (34) said the training has given her technical knowledge and skills to breed traditional seeds suitable for her climate and needs.
The trainings offered by PELUM Zimbabwe are part of the organisation’s efforts to strengthen farmer managed seed systems. They are intended to promote farmers’ rights as enshrined in the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.
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