Crop plant varieties developed by local farmers, commonly referred to as ‘farmers' varieties’, are problematic because there are no fixed taxonomic or legal definitions of them. As a result, policies to increase the share of benefits farmers receive from the use of such varieties struggle to have an effect. Aiming to clarifying these issues, this volume explores the nature of farmers’ varieties in the context of their biological, social and legal significance. The book addresses the complexities of defining what farmers’ varieties are and how they differ from one another and from generic varieties. It then charts the evolution of the concept of ‘farmers’ rights’, from the dawn of ‘genetic resources’ as a subject worthy of international attention, to the first legal recognition of the concept, through to current efforts to develop national level policies and laws. Further, the book examines outstanding policy-making challenges linked to the absence of fixed taxonomic or legal definitions of farmers’ varieties. Case studies are included from Africa, Asia, Europe and South America in which farmers, researchers and policy advocates have been confronted with the issues raised in this book. Various solutions are considered based on revised or new definitions of farmers’ varieties that reflect the biological and cultural realities in which they are produced, and the relative costs and benefits of attempting to implement each of the policies discussed.

This volume explores the usefulness of the Asian model of agricultural development for Africa, where, even before the recent world food crisis, half the population lived on less than on dollar a day, and a staggering one in three people and one third of all children were undernourished. Africa has abundant natural resources; agriculture provides most of its jobs, a third of national income and a larger portion of total export earnings. However the levels of land and labor productivity rank among the worst in the world. The book explains Africa’s productivity gap and proposes ways to close it, by examining recent experience in Africa and by drawing on lessons from Asia.

The book focuses on the principles and practices of tropical maize improvement with special emphasis on early and extra-early maize to feed the increasing population in Sub-Saharan Africa. It highlights the similarities and differences between results obtained in temperate regions of the world and WCA in terms of corroboration or refutation of genetic principles and theory of maize breeding. The book is expected to be of great interest to maize breeders, advanced undergraduates, graduate students, professors and research scientists in the national and international research institutes all over the world, particularly Sub-Saharan Africa. It will also serve as a useful reference for agricultural extension and technology transfer systems, Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) and Community-Based Organizations (CBOs), seed companies and community-based seed enterprises, policy makers, and all those who are interested in generating wealth from agriculture and alleviating hunger and poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa.

This book is the result of a study on demand-led plant variety design for changing markets in Africa, the purpose of which is to identify and share best practices in demand-led plant breeding from private and public sector breeding programmes worldwide. The intended audiences are professionals in plant breeding and related areas, such as seed production, who have interests in developing and disseminating new plant varieties as a way to increase productivity and profitability in crop agriculture, especially in Africa. The volume is also intended for use as a resource book for the education of postgraduate scholars in plant breeding and genetics, and for the continuing professional development of plant breeders. For this purpose, boxes are included in the main sections of each chapter that summarize its educational objectives and present the key messages and questions that are involved; in addition, there is a final box at the end of each chapter that summarizes its overall learning objectives.