Based on several years of Farmer Field School seasons in Zimbabwe, Peru, Vietnam, Lao PDR and Myanmar, the SD=HS program developed an improved manual to guide the Training of Trainer courses. These courses prepare trainers to facilitate a season of Farmer Field School activities on Participatory Plant Breeding. Topics include the organisation of a Farmer […]

Dutch photographer and former news anchor Sacha de Boer visited the SD=HS program in Lao P.D.R. She portraited farmers and her series will be exhibited in the Netherlands and at international and global conferences. During her visit to Lao P.D.R., SD=HS Program Leader Gigi Manicad was interviewed. In this video, she explains the principles of […]

Asociación ANDES together with Oxfam Novib chaired a side event during the 23rd Conference of Parties in Bonn; organized by Helvetas and IFOAM. The program likes to thank the high number of attendents for their useful comments. At the side event, SD=HS shared insights on the global role of smallholder farmers in adapting strategies to ensure […]

SD=HS aims to create an enabling policy environment for smallholder farmers and indigenous communities, which strengthens their Farmers’ Right and the farmers’ seed systems they operate in, while empowering the farming communities to participate in policy-making processes. On 30 October 2017, Marjory Jeke, lead farmer from one of the program’s FFS in Zimbabwe, presented her […]

The production of certified seed in Zimbabwe has largely been the domain of large scale commercial farmers due the stringent production requirements, and quality standards that the country has set for the certification of any seed crop. According to the Seeds Act (Chapter19:13) and accompanying enabling regulations contained in Seed Regulations and Seed (Certification Scheme) […]

On Thursday, 30th of March 2017 SD=HS partner Asociación ANDES held a multi-sector Dialogue on the joint implementation of the regulations of agro-biodiversity zones and the national Peruvian seed laws, as well as the articulation of life plans and bio-cultural protocols to these laws. This multi-stakeholder dialogue brought together a good number of policy makers and experts […]

On Wednesday, February 22, 2017 the Second Vice President and Member of Congress of the Republic of Peru, Mercedes Araoz, visited the Potato Park. The Vice-president, was accompanied by the Minister of the Environment, Elsa Galarza, and Vice Minister of Strategic development of Natural Resources Fernando Leon. The authorities were impressed with how the health of […]

Event: Global Methodological Workshop The Hague, The Netherlands Feb 6 – Feb 10 Participants: Asociación ANDES, CTDT and SEARICE, Plant Resources Center Vietnam, Mekong Delta Development Research Institute Vietnam, National Agriculture and Forestry Research Institute Lao P.D.R., Metta Foundation Myanmar and  Oxfam Novib (organizing participant) From the 6th until the 10th of February, SD=HS partners come […]

The SD=HS program presents a side event during the 16th regular session of the Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture: Strengthening women’s capacity in biodiversity and nutrition through farmer field schools Venue and time: Iran room (B-116); 13:15 – 14:45, FAO Organizer: Oxfam Novib At this side event, we will present findings from […]

‘UYWAY’ (the seed) tells the story of a spiritual journey made by Quechua farmers bringing their cherished potato seeds from the Potato Park in Peru to the Svalbard in Norway. It is a voyage from potato fields high in the Andean mountains of Peru to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault: a fail-safe seed storage facility […]

‘A symposium held recently by the International Convention for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) sought to explore the interrelations between the convention and the international treaty on plant genetic resources for food and agriculture. Farmers’ Rights lie at the intersection of the two treaties and while some find the treaties complementary, some others […]

The second Global Consultation on Farmers’ Rights was held in Bali, Indonesia from 27-30 September 2016. Building on the outcomes of the informal consultations in Zimbabwe in 2007 and the first global consultations in Ethiopia in 2010, the consultations in Indonesia brought together a broad range of stakeholders for a constructive dialogue on Farmers’ Rights […]

Share a Seed (ENG) from Oxfam Novib on Vimeo. Based on footage of Dutch photographer Sasha de Boer, Oxfam Novib and CTDT together with the Dutch Postcode Lottery (NPL) created a video showing the Farmer Field Schools in Zimbabwe. The video is part of the ‘Share a Seed’ campaign (for more info: www.shareaseed.nl).

“Seed: The untold story” was broadcasted during the International Documentary Festival in Amsterdam. The festival is widely known for its cutting-edge and socially and culturally engaged program. The movie, directed by Jon Betz and Taggart Siegel, was selected for the Oxfam Novib subprogram in which documentaries are shown that are thematically related to fields in […]

Finally, after 15 years in waiting on 28th September, the United States have ratified the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO). This probably is good and bad news for farmers all across the world. The FAO Treaty entered into force  in 2004 with […]

The second Global Consultation on Farmers’ Rights will be held in Bali, Indonesia from 27-30 September 2016. Building on the outcomes of the informal consultations in Zimbabwe in 2007 and the first global consultations in Ethiopia in 2010, the consultations in Indonesia will again bring together a broad range of stakeholders for a constructive dialogue […]

Message of Ms. Gigi Manicad, Senior program officer SD=HS for Oxfam Novib, recorded at the European side event titled “I Have a Seed

The International Panel of Experts on Sustainable Food Systems (IPES-Food) brings together expert voices representing different disciplines and different types of knowledge, to inform the policy debate on how to reform food systems across the world. The Panel looks at issues like under-nutrition, obesity, rural livelihood insecurity and environmental degradation through an integrated food systems lens, bringing […]