Timor-Leste’s Efforts to Achieve Maize Seed Security Using ‘Community Seed Production
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Date
2013
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Badan Penelitian dan Pengembangan Pertanian
Abstract
Timor-Leste’s national seed demands average of 750 tons of maize seed (assuming about 75,000 ha
of maize are planted annually and seed replacement rate is 33%). In 2011 Timor-Leste could produce only 32 tons
(4% of requirement) of quality seeds of ‘Sele’, a high-yielding open pollinated maize variety (international name –
LYDMR from CIMMYT India) recommended by the Ministry of Agriculture & Fisheries (MAF). The remaining seed gap
is met by farmers’ saved seed of low-yielding local varieties and by imports with the associated problems of cost,
suitability and timely delivery. To enable and empower community groups to locally produce, store and market quality
seeds , an ACIAR & AusAID-assisted MAF program (Seeds of Life Phase 3, 2011-2016) introduced ‘community seed
production’ in the 2011-12 cropping season. A total of 320 maize seed producer groups were supported by MAF-SoL
with seed production training of MAF and NGO extension staff and 5 kg of certified Sele seed per group, sufficient
to plant a 2,000 m2 seed plot. In the initial year of implementation 289 groups (90%) produced an average of 159 kg
of quality Sele seed (totaling 46 tons) and 31 groups (10%) suffered total crop failure due to grazing animals. This
locally-produced seed stored in an airtight 200 liter steel drums is sufficient to meet the seed requirement of all group
members as well as extra for local barter or sale. Community seed production is a cost-effective, sustainable
method of achieving local seed security. With consistent planning and implementation in each village, sub-district and
district Timor-Leste could achieve local seed security, a necessary prerequisite to local food security.