Rice Seed Development Strategy of Sierra Leone. 2017-2026.

This National Rice Development Strategy (NRDS) moves from the consideration that agriculture development could be an effective driver of economic growth, generating jobs and reducing poverty. Therefore Sierra Leone rice production needs to be increased, in order to contribute to the improvement of food security and economic development. The Strategy identifies the improvement of quality and certified seeds as the primary strategic intervention that can significantly increase production and productivity, aiming at assessing challenges and issues across the national rice seed sub-sector and outlining a roadmap for developing the rice seed sub-sector and doubling the supply of quality seed rice. The Strategy describes Legislation, Policies and Plans concerning seed production seed quality control, and seed supply.
The Strategy, in line with its vision of improving the rice value chain and increasing productivity, defines the following specific objectives: promoting, through farmers and smallholders, the use of certified rice seed of improved varieties; enhancement of the quality of certified rice seed by the strengthening of the seed regulatory frameworks and institutions and the enforcement of related Laws and Policies; providing an enabling environment for private sector in seed business; improvement of human, physical and technical capacities of all the relevant stakeholders along the rice seed value chain, including inspection activities.