Agricultural experts have raised fresh concerns over campaigns discouraging African farmers from adopting improved seeds, warning that such narratives are deepening low productivity and perpetuating poverty across the continent.
Dr. Sylvester Oikeh, a consultant with the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) on TELA maize, delivered the caution during the annual stewardship training workshop for extension officers in Kaduna.
He argued that resistance to improved seed varieties is a major factor behind Africa’s lagging maize yields compared to global benchmarks.According to Oikeh, Africa’s average maize yield remains significantly below global standards.
In Nigeria alone, about 6.5 million hectares are devoted to maize cultivation, yet farmers achieve an average yield of just 2.2 tons per hectare.
This falls far short of the global average of 5.8 to 6 tons per hectare, and even further behind yields in regions such as North America and Europe, where productivity can exceed 8–10 tons per hectare due to widespread adoption of improved seed varieties and modern farming practices.
“Discouraging farmers from using improved seeds has effectively recycled poverty on the continent,” Oikeh said.
“When farmers replant harvested grain instead of certified seeds, they are planting what should be food, not seed. That decision alone significantly reduces yield potential.”
He noted that many of the anti-improved seed narratives originate from regions that themselves rely heavily on advanced agricultural technologies. “In Europe and other developed regions, improved seeds are central to agricultural success. It is contradictory to promote otherwise in Africa,” he added.
Oikeh dismissed claims that improved seeds force farmers into dependency on multinational seed companies.
He emphasized that improved seeds are specifically developed to enhance productivity, resist pests, and tolerate environmental stresses—benefits that cannot be guaranteed when farmers recycle grain.Recent agricultural data supports his position.
Studies across sub-Saharan Africa show that farmers using improved maize varieties can achieve yield increases of 30 to 100 per.cent, depending on environmental conditions and complementary inputs such as fertilizer and irrigation. In contrast, reliance on saved grain often leads to declining yields over time due to genetic degeneration and increased vulnerability to pests and diseases.
The AATF consultant also highlighted that opposition to improved seeds has intensified alongside the introduction of genetically modified (GM) crops designed to address key production challenges, including drought and pest infestations.
“Improved and GM seeds are not the problem—they are part of the solution to Africa’s food security challenge,” Oikeh stated.
“Farmers are increasingly recognizing the difference between grain and seed, and that awareness is critical for transforming agricultural productivity.”
With Africa’s population projected to rise sharply in the coming decades, experts warn that closing the yield gap will be essential to ensuring food security, increasing farmer incomes, and reducing dependence on food imports.
Founded in 2003 to address Africa’s food security prospects through agricultural technology, AATF believes that the agricultural sector is a key foundational pillar as Africa consolidates its economic growth and carves out its new position as a major global economic powerhouse and the next growth market in the world.
It was formed in response to the need for an effective mechanism that would facilitate and support negotiation for technology access and delivery and formation of appropriate partnerships to manage the development & deployment of innovative technologies for use by smallholder farmers in Sub Saharan Africa (SSA).
