Market-driven seed sector development: Growing demand for quality vegetable seed in sub-Saharan Africa

Vegetables are vital for nutrition and farmer incomes, yet farmers across sub-Saharan Africa often struggle to access high-quality seed. Increasingly, private seed companies are expected to help close this gap. But what happens when the development of seed systems is driven by markets? This thesis examines how a market-driven approach shapes the development of vegetable seed systems in sub-Saharan Africa. Drawing mostly on fieldwork in northern Nigeria, it shows that market-driven approaches can encourage innovation and increase farmer adoption of improved seeds as well as good agricultural practices. The research also highlights the importance of trust: farmers carefully assess seed products and the agrodealers selling them when deciding what to buy. While markets can certainly strengthen some seed systems, they might leave others behind. Public investment remains essential to strengthen seed systems for crops and farmers that are important for nutrition security but less commercially attractive.