From Farmer Participation to Pro-poor Seed Markets: The Political Economy of Commercial Cereal Seed Networks in Ghana

Abstract

The current agricultural policy discourse in Ghana emphasises ‘pro‐poor market’ approaches to seeds and input delivery systems by creating public‐private partnerships and an enabling environment for agri‐business. This has resulted in a particular configuration of actors and interests that define the country's emerging Green Revolution agenda, of which certified seed is a critical component. This article draws on the results of a political economic analysis of Ghana's cereal seed system to examine how influential alliances of public and private actors have constructed a particular vision of the future of agriculture in the country which serves a narrow set of political interests and constrains local innovation and opportunity in the seed sector. It highlights how this universalising ‘consensus’ is acting to close down efforts to establish more pluralistic, participatory approaches in favour of a single, dominant, commercially oriented model of agricultural development.