Production de semences de sorgho en milieu paysan au Mali

29/09/2011 - Article

A technical guide to help farmers produce their own quality-certified sorghum seeds. From production to certification regulations, this booklet gives farmers practical and educational advice to guide them through every stage of the process.

This new technical guide to producing sorghum seeds on smallholdings in Mali has the advantage of giving farmers the possibility of producing their own quality seeds. Crop yields depend on seed quality: seeds must be pure, healthy and unbroken.

The booklet gives farmers practical and educational advice to guide them through every stage of seed production, treatment and storage, and certification regulations. It advises on choosing land, varieties, and cropping practices. In line with the relevant certification criteria, it describes the necessary drying, threshing, winnowing, calibration and storage methods, and phytosanitary treatments. Moreover, to help farmers determine the quality of their seeds, it gives very simple explanations of two field tests: a germination test and another to measure moisture content. Farmers are thus able to produce large quantities of quality-certified, identical seeds. Above and beyond what they use themselves, they can also sell these certified seeds and thus see a good, rapid return on the work put in.

The guide is intended for seed producers belonging to smallholders' organizations, and technicians from such organizations who support or supervise farmers who produce seeds.

A similar guide has been available since 2008 for farmers in Burkina Faso.

Both guides can be downloaded free of charge.

Production de semences de sorgho en milieu paysan au Mali
Amadou Sidibé, Kirsten vom Brocke, Harouna Coulibaly, Jean-Charles Evrard
CIRAD
2011