Ngo-Government Links In Seed Production: Case Studies From The Gambia And Ethiopia

These two case studies illustrate the wide range of approaches that can be taken even to as discrete an activity as seed production. The Gambian case documents initiatives taken by government (with donor support) to improve the quantity and quality of seed supply by working with private contractors, NGOs and donor-funded projects. The Ethiopian case documents efforts by a foreign-based NGO to bring together government agencies and local NGOs in the production of appropriate seed for small farmers. Both cases have had their share of problems: resource constraints in the Gambian case have led to frustrations as only part of a wide mandate could be fulfilled, and parallel initiatives in some spheres are being taken by NGOs themselves. In the Ethiopian case, the reluctance of some foreign-based NGOs to make a sustained commitment to "research" slowed the initial identification of collaborators Both cases, however, describe innovative collaboration in seed production among institutions of different types. They refute the widely-held view that seed production should lie entirely in the government domain, or, in the case of certain crops, in that of commercial companies. In doing so, they offer insights which may be of value elsewhere.