Partnership for Seed Technology Transfer in Africa (PASTTA)

Duration	PASTTA 1: October 2017-September 2022   PASTTA 2: October 2022–December 2024
Donors	PASTTA 1: USAID PASTTA 2: USAID, in partnership with the International Potato Center (CIP)
Budget	PASTTA 1: US$8.5 million PASTTA 2:
Location	PASTTA 1: Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Senegal and Uganda PASTTA 2: Senegal, Mali, Kenya and Rwanda
Outreach	817k Smallholder Farmers146 Seed Companies
Partners	Sustainable Agriculture Foundation (SAF) (Former SFSA), The African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF), New Markets Lab (NML), MyAgro, International/National Agricultural Research Organizations (IARCs/NARS), Private Seed Enterprises, Innovation Labs, Public Universities, Public Regulatory Institutions.

Context:

In Sub Sahara Africa (SSA), seed systems are often weak and fragmented, presenting significant challenges for agricultural productivity and food security. Traditional models of seed development and distribution have proven inadequate, highlighting the need for new approaches to address these persistent bottlenecks. While seed systems in developed countries are highly advanced, the seed system in SSA continues to face a myriad of challenges including the low adoption of available technologies and improved varieties which offer significant genetic gain. 

To address limited access to quality seed, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), funded the two-year (October 2022–December 2024) project entitled: Partnership for Seed Technology Transfer in Africa (PASTTA II). Designed through a consultative process between the International Potato Center (CIP, a member of One-CGIAR), and Syngenta Foundation East Africa (SFEA)3, the project aimed at enhancing production and uptake of quality seeds of robust varieties for ten priority food crops (potato, bean, cowpea, fonio, groundnut, maize, pearl millet, sesame, sorghum, and soybean) in four African countries: Kenya, Mali, Rwanda, and Senegal. 

The project aligned its objectives with USAID’s Global Food Security Strategy (GFSS 2016–2021),5 which emphasizes the importance of increasing the availability and accessibility of climate-resilient agricultural technologies, fostering inclusive economic growth, and building resilience to climate shocks. The program’s integrated approach—focusing on technological innovation, capacity building, and market development—has advanced critical objectives shared by PASTTA II and USAID, which collectively aim to address hunger and malnutrition in Africa. 

PASTTA II was a follow-up project from a five-year PASTTA I project (October 2017–September 2022), funded by USAID and implemented by the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture (SFSA) in five African counties: Kenya, Senegal, Mali, Malawi, and Uganda. PASTTA II was implemented by means of two distinct components: the scaling component implemented by SFEA, and the new component implemented by CIP in Rwanda that focused on enhancing uptake of improved potato varieties through quality seed potato production and delivery mechanisms. SFEA became the Sustainable Agriculture Foundation-Africa (SAF-A) from 1 September 2024, and the transition had no impact on the smooth implementation of the project activities.

Objectives:

• Add value to Feed the Future (FtF) investments with USAID country missions and FtF Innovation Labs and other public-private platforms
• Extend an existing, replicable and scalable seed technology transfer model (Seeds2B Africa’s services) from largely private breeding to kick-start an equivalent mechanism for public-private technology transfer of a wider range of publicly bred seed technologies.
• Engage leading seed companies, civil society organizations and other actors involved in input supply and a wider range of downstream partners to better define the demand for seed.
• Develop business plans for Early Generation Seeds (EGS) (in the context of private delivery of public (and where appropriate private) material
• Assist regional bodies and member states in the practical and transparent implementation of regionally harmonized seed schemes.

Key Activities:

• Facilitating improved seed commercialization approach and market assessments 
• Improved seed variety technology scouting
• Variety screening, adaptation, registration, and marketing trials
• Facilitating variety licensing engagements
• Private sector engagement and capacity building
• Seed Policy Advocacy
• Farmer aggregation, and market linkage support

Achievements (so far):

• 495K Land under improved varieties (Ha)
• 24K Tons of seeds produced
• $36M Value of annual sales of improved seed varieties
• 879k Smallholder farmers supported in accessing improved seeds
• $140k Value of royalties paid to NARS in Kenya
• 559 Institutional Partnerships
• 35 Crops supported 
• 1,525 Varieties trialed
• 74 Varieties registered 
• 146 Seed companies accessing improved seed varieties