East African Community SEEDS AND PLANT VARIETIES BILL 2025

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Today, we turn our attention to the new draft Bill that has sparked wide debate among farmers, civil society, and policy experts across East Africa, the East African Community Seeds and Plant Varieties Bill 2025. Across East Africa, farming has always been more than just a livelihood. For generations, farmers have saved seeds from one harvest to plant the next. They have shared seeds with neighbors, exchanged them across communities, and carefully selected the varieties that survive drought, pests, and changing seasons. But now, a new draft bill is stirring debate across the agricultural sector. The East African Community Seeds and Plant Varieties Bill 2025 seeks to harmonize seed regulations among member states including Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, and South Sudan. Supporters of the bill say it will help improve seed quality, strengthen plant breeding research, and make it easier to trade seeds across borders within the East African Community. They argue that a unified system could boost agricultural productivity and support the development of improved seed varieties. However, critics including farmers’ groups, activists, and civil society organizations say parts of bill raises serious concerns. Some fear that certain provisions could limit farmers’ traditional practices such as saving, exchanging, and replanting seeds. Others worry that stricter certification requirements may favor commercial plant breeders and large seed companies over smallholder farmers. At the center of the debate is a key question: how can the region balance innovation in agriculture with the protection of farmers’ rights and indigenous seed systems that have sustained communities for decades? In today’s conversation on On The Farm, we explore what this proposed law means, why it matters to farmers, and what it could mean for the future of seeds and food security in East Africa

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