Revolution in Kenya: Farmers mobilize to defend indigenous seeds
On October 16, 2023, a historic petition was filed before the Kenyan courts by fifteen committed farmers. The latter wish to amend a controversial law which criminalizes the use, sale or barter of non-certified indigenous seeds. This law, introduced in 2021, can result in penalties of up to 2 years in prison and a $6,800 fine for violators.
The particularity of this law is that it goes against the realities and agricultural practices in Kenya. In fact, nearly 90% of the country’s crops come from indigenous seeds, passed down from generation to generation. Kenyan farmers have always relied on these local seeds, adapted to the country’s environmental conditions.
Among the farmers who filed the petition, Francis Njiri, a farm owner in Nakuru County, raises a crucial question: why should a law restrict their right to benefit from the natural resources available to them? According to him, these indigenous seeds are an integral part of Kenyan agricultural heritage and their use is a right enshrined in the Constitution.
In addition to the question of farmers’ rights, the law on seeds and plant varieties also poses economic problems. Indeed, complying with this law requires farmers to have their seeds certified or to buy them already certified, which represents high costs for most of them. In addition, this risks leading to a standardization of cultivated varieties and an impoverishment of agricultural biodiversity.
Greenpeace Kenya member Elizabeth Atieno highlights the importance of indigenous seeds in crop resilience in the face of harsh environmental conditions such as long periods of drought. She therefore pleads so that farmers can continue to work with these seeds, in order to guarantee the country’s food sovereignty in the future.
It is important to emphasize that family farming represents 70% of agricultural production in Kenya. Restrictive measures concerning indigenous seeds could therefore have a considerable impact on the lives of farmers and on the country’s food security.
This request filed before the courts is a real revolution in the Kenyan agricultural sector. It highlights the issues related to the preservation of native seeds, on an economic, environmental and social level. A matter to follow closely, because it could pave the way for new legislation more adapted to the reality and needs of Kenyan farmers.