Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Core Dilemma: Seed Sovereignty and Globalisation

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Book cover Globalisation and Seed Sovereignty in Sub-Saharan Africa

Part of the book series: International Political Economy Series ((IPES))

  • 401 Accesses

Abstract

This book examines the tension between the need for food, or food security, and the desire to maintain sovereignty over food production, in this case seeds for agricultural production, or seed sovereignty. The need for food is increasingly being met by a greater reliance on uniform commercially bred seed, including genetically modified seeds designed by multinational corporations and supported by philanthropic organisations such as the Gates Foundation. However, meeting the need for food in this way risks eliminating the sovereignty of domestic producers. These are the local farmers and farming communities who wish to continue freely cultivating the seeds of their choice. This chapter introduces the issues at stake in the tension between food security and food sovereignty.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Notes

  1. 1.

    F1 hybrid refers to filial generation 1—the first filial generation of offspring of distinctly different parental types. They are not as resilient in the second generation and so are not appropriate for seed saving.

  2. 2.

    https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-05/bayer-sees-earnings-lower-after-63-billion-monsanto-purchase

  3. 3.

    Meaning Nine Seeds, Navdanya was established by Vandana Shiva in 1987 to protect and enhance indigenous seed and crop varieties from corporate capture in agriculture.

  4. 4.

    https://nyeleni.org/spip.php?article290 [accessed online 10 April 2017].

  5. 5.

    http://kenya.opendataforafrica.org/ejikndd/kenya-agriculture-sheet

  6. 6.

    http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/DT.ODA.ALLD.CD

  7. 7.

    The Seed and Plant Varieties Act, 1972 (as amended in 2002) Act No. 2 of 2002 (Cap 326).

  8. 8.

    Federal Negarit Gazette, No. 27, 15 February 2013, pp. 6808–6825.

  9. 9.

    Peasant associations are also called kebeles in Ethiopia or kushets in Tigray. When five or six or up to ten villages come together, they form a kebele.

  10. 10.

    ‘Wurch’, is the climatic zone represented by cold moist temperatures associated with Afroalpine areas. The only crop capable of growing at this high altitude is barley.

  11. 11.

    A ‘wereda’ or woreda is a third-level administrative district division. It is part of a zone, which are grouped into regions based on ethno-linguistic communities or ‘kiliochs’.

References

  • Abay, F., Bjornstad, A. and Smale, M. 2009. Measuring on farm diversity and determinants of barley diversity in Tigray, northern Ethiopia. Monoma Ethiopian Journal of Science, 1(2), pp. 44–66.

    Google Scholar 

  • Abay, F., de Boef, W. and Bjørnstad, Å. 2011. Network analysis of barley seed flows in Tigray, Ethiopia: supporting the design of strategies that contribute to on-farm management of plant genetic resources. Plant Genetic Resources, 9(4), pp. 495–505.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ACB. 2015. The expansion of the commercial seed sector in sub-Saharan Africa: major players, key issues and trends [Online]. Available from: www.acbio.org.za. [Accessed 3rd February 2016].

  • AFSA and GRAIN. 2015. Land and seed laws under attack, who is pushing changes in Africa? [Online]. Available from: http://www.grain.org [Accessed 22nd January 2016].

  • Alemayehu, F. 1995. Genetic variation between and within Ethiopian barley landraces with emphasis on durable resistance. PhD thesis. Wageningen University, Landbouw.

    Google Scholar 

  • Alemu, D. 2011. The political economy of Ethiopian cereal seed systems: state control, market liberalisation and decentralisation. IDS Bulletin, 42(4), pp. 69–77.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Altieri, M.A. 2009. Agroecology, small farms and food sovereignty. Monthly Review [Online]. 61(3), pp. 102–113. Available from: http://search.proquest.com/openview/98165d33d3bec3c0f47ca6821e49eef0/1 [Accessed 6th December 2010].

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • ATA Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency. 2012. ATA Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency. 2012. Program Update July 2012 / vol. 1, no. 2. Addis Ababa: Ethiopian Agricultural Transformation Agency.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berne Declaration. 2013. Agropoly: a handful of corporations control world food production. Zurich, Switzerland: Berne Declaration & EcoNexus.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cerny, P. 2009. Multi-nodal politics: globalisation is what actors make of it. Review of International Studies, 35(2), pp. 421–449.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cerny, P. 2010. Rethinking world politics, a theory of transnational neopluralism. Oxford: Oxford University press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • De Jonge, B. 2014. Plant variety protection in sub-Saharan Africa: balancing commercial and smallholder farmers’ interests. Journal of Politics and Law, 7 (3), pp. 100–111.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • De Schutter, O. 2009. Seed policies and the right to food: enhancing agrobiodiversity and encouraging innovation report of the Special Rapporteur. A/64/170 United Nations General Assembly [Online]. Available from: http://farmersrights.org/pdf/righttofood-n0942473.pdf. [Accessed 23rd February 2013].

  • Di Falco, S. and Bezabih, Y. 2010. Seeds for livelihood: crop biodiversity and food production in Ethiopia. Ecological Economics, 69, pp. 1695–1702.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Di Falco, S. and Chavas, J. 2009. On crop biodiversity, risk exposure, and food security in the highlands of Ethiopia. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 91(3), pp. 599–611.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eriksen, T.H. 2007. Globalisation: the key concepts. Oxford: Berg Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • ETC (Erosion, Technology and Concentration Group). 2010. Capturing climate genes. Gene giants stockpile ‘climate-ready’ patents [Online]. Available from: http://www.etcgroup.org/content/gene-giants-stockpile-patents-“climate-ready”-crops-bid-become-biomassters-0. [Accessed 1st February 2012].

  • Ethiopian Census. 2007. Census-2007 Report. Addis Ababa: Central Statistical Agency. Available at: http://www.csa.gov.et/census-report/complete-report/census-2007. Accessed 14 March 2019.

  • FAO. 2011. Potential effects of climate change on crop pollination. Rome: FAO.

    Google Scholar 

  • FAO. 2015. The state of food insecurity in the world. Rome: FAO.

    Google Scholar 

  • Feyissa, R. 2006. Farmers’ rights in Ethiopia: a case study. Lysaker, Norway: The Fridtjof Nansen Institute.

    Google Scholar 

  • Geleta, E.B. 2013. The politics of identity and methodology in African development ethnography. Qualitative Research, 14(1), pp. 131–146 [Online]. Available from: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1468794112468469. [Accessed 26th June 2013].

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • George, S. 2015. Shadow sovereigns—how global corporations are seizing power. Cambridge UK: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Giddens, A. 1990. The consequences of modernity. Cambridge UK: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Gillham, B. 2000. Case study research methods. London and New York: Continuum.

    Google Scholar 

  • GRAIN. 2005. Africa’s seed laws: red carpet for the corporations [Online]. Available from: https://www.grain.org/article/entries/540-africa-s-seeds-laws-red-carpet-for-corporations. [Accessed 11th November 2014].

  • GRAIN. 2008. Seed aid, agribusiness and the food crisis. Editorial. Seedling, October: 2–9.

    Google Scholar 

  • Guillemin, M. and Gillam, L. 2004. Ethics, reflexivity and ‘Ethically important moments’ in research. Qualitative Inquiry, 10(2), pp. 261–280.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harrison, G. 2010. Neoliberal Africa: The impact of global social engineering. London: Zed Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harvey, D. 2003. The new imperialism. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Held, D. and McGrew, A. 2007. Globalisation/anti-globalisation: beyond the great divide. 2nd edition, Cambridge: Polity Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hettne, B. 2009. Thinking about development – development matters. London: Zed Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hirst, P. and Thompson, G. 2002. The future of globalisation—cooperation and conflict. Journal of the Nordic International Studies Association, 37(3), pp. 247–265.

    Google Scholar 

  • IAASTD. 2009. Agriculture at a crossroads: a synthesis of the global and sub-global IAASTD reports. Washington, DC: Island Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • IDS Bulletin. 2011. The politics of seed in Africa’s green revolution. Oxford: Wiley and Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • IPCC. 2014. Climate change 2014: synthesis report, contribution of working groups I, II and III to the fifth assessment report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Online]. Available from: http://ipcc.ch/pdf/assessment-report/ar5/syr/AR5_SYR_FINAL_SPM.pdf. [Accessed 30th March 2017].

  • Kaso, T. and Guben, G. 2015. Review of barley value chain management in Ethiopia. Journal of Biology, Agriculture and Healthcare, 5(10), pp. 84–97.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kloppenburg, J. 2008. Seeds, sovereignty, and the Via Campesina. Plants, Property, and the Promise of Open Source Biology [Online]. Available from: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/255583305_Seeds_Sovereignty_and_the_Via_Campesina_Plants_Property_and_the_Promise_of_Open_Source_Biology. [Accessed 10th April 2017].

  • Kloppenburg, J. 2010. Impeding dispossession, enabling repossession: biological open source and the recovery of seed sovereignty. Journal of Agrarian Change, 10(3), pp. 367–388.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kloppenburg, J., 2014. Re-purposing the master’s tools: the open source seed initiative and the struggle for seed sovereignty. Journal of Peasant Studies, 41(6), pp. 1225–1246.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Louwaars, N.P., De Boef, W.S. and Edeme, J. 2013. Integrated seed sector development in Africa: A basis for seed policy and law. Journal of Crop Improvement. 27, pp. 186–214.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • LVC. 2008. Declaration of Maputo. IN: V International Conference of LVC, October 19–22 [Online]. Available from: http://viacampesina.org/en/index.php/our-conferences-mainmenu-28/5-maputo-2008-mainmenu-68/declarations-mainmenu-70/602-open-letter-from-maputo-v-international-conference-of-la-vcampesina

  • Maathai, W. 2010. The challenge for Africa. London: Arrow Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mander, H. 2010. ‘Words from the heart’: Researching people’s stories. Journal of Human Rights Practice, 2(2), pp. 252–270.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McGrew, A. 2011. Globalisation and global politics. IN: Baylis, J., Smith, S. and Owens, P. (eds.) The globalization of world politics, an introduction to international relations. 5th ed. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 14–33.

    Google Scholar 

  • McKeon, N. 2015. Food security governance; empowering communities, regulating corporations. London and New York: Routledge, Taylor and Francis.

    Google Scholar 

  • McMichael, P. and Schneider, M. 2011. Food security politics and the millennium development goals. Third World Quarterly, 32(1), pp. 119–139.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Moseley, W.G. 2012. The corporate take-over of African food security. Pambazuka News [Online]. Available from: www.pambazuka.org/food-health/corporate-take-over-african-food-security. [Accessed 21st September 2013].

  • Mous, M. 2003. The making of a mixed language. The case of Ma’a/Mbuga. Amsterdam, Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Munyi, P. and De Jonge, B. 2015. Seed systems support in Kenya: consideration for an integrated seed sector development approach. Journal of Sustainable Development, 8(2), pp. 161.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Munyi, P., De Jonge, B. and Visser, B. 2016. Opportunities and threats to harmonisation of plant breeders’ rights in Africa: ARIPO and SADC. African Journal of International and Comparative Law, 24(1), pp. 86–104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Murphy, S. 2014. Expanding the possibilities for a future free of hunger. Dialogues in Human Geography [Online], 4(2), pp. 225–228. Available from: http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/2043820614537166. [Accessed 26th September 2014].

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nagoya Protocol. 2010. Nagoya protocol on access to genetic resources and the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising from their utilization to the Convention on Biological Diversity. Quebec: Secetariat of the Convention on Biological Diversity, United Nations Environmental Programme.

    Google Scholar 

  • Nyéléni Declaration. 2007. Nyéléni 2007. Forum for food sovereignty. Sélingué, Mali, February 23–27, 2007. Available at: https://nyeleni.org/DOWNLOADS/Nyelni_EN.pdf. Accessed 14 March 2019.

  • Oakland Institute. 2017. Down on the seed: The World Bank enables corporate takeover of seeds. California, USA: Oakland Institute.

    Google Scholar 

  • Patel, R. 2007. Stuffed and starved. London: Portobello Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Patel, R. 2009. What does food sovereignty look like? The Journal of Peasant Studies, 36(3), pp. 663–706.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pittaway, E., Bartolomei, L, and Hugman, R. 2010. Stop stealing our stories: The ethics of research with vulnerable groups. Journal of Human Rights Practice, 2(2), pp. 229–251.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rahmato, D., Ayenew, M., Kefale, A. and Habermann, B. 2014. Reflections on development in Ethiopia. New trends, sustainability and challenges. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: Forum for Social Studies.

    Google Scholar 

  • Robin, M. 2010. The world according to Monsanto: pollution, corruption, and the control of our food supply. New York: The New Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sassen, S. 1996. Losing control: sovereignty in an age of globalisation. New York: Columbia University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scholte, J.A. 2008. Defining globalisation. The World Economy, 31(11), pp. 1471–1502.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scoones, I. and Thompson, J. 2011. The politics of seed in Africa’s green revolution: alternative narratives and competing pathways. IDS Bulletin, 42(4), pp. 1–23.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shiva, V. 2013. The law of the seed. [Online]. Available from: http://www.navdanya.org/attachments/Latest_Publications4.pdf. [Accessed 2nd April 2015].

  • Slaughter, A.M. 2004. A new world order. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smart, C. 2009. Shifting horizons: reflections on qualitative methods. Feminist Theory, 10(3), pp. 295–308.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sperling, L. 2008. When disaster strikes: a guide for assessing seed security. Cali: CIAT.

    Google Scholar 

  • Swynnerton, R. J. M. 1954. A plan to intensify the development of African agriculture in Kenya. Nairobi: Government Printer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tansey, G. 2011. Whose power to control? Some reflections on seed systems and food security in a changing world. IDS Bulletin, 42(4), pp. 111–120.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Toulmin, C. 2009. Climate change in Africa. London: Zed books.

    Google Scholar 

  • UNDP. 2008. Human development report 2007/08. Fighting climate change: Human solidarity in a divided world [Online]. Available from: http://hdr.undp.org/en/content/human-development-report-20078. [Accessed 10th April 2017].

  • UNDP-UNDAF. 2011. Ethiopia United Nations Development Assistance Framework 2012-2015. United Nations Country Team, March 2011.

    Google Scholar 

  • UN International Declaration of Peasants’ Rights. 2012. Final study on the advancement of the rights of peasants and other people working in rural areas. Geneva: United Nation A/HRC/AC/8/6. Available at: http://www.wphna.org/htdocs/downloadsfeb2013/2012%20Declaration%20of%20Peasants%27%20Rights.pdf. Accessed 14 March 2019.

  • Vavilov, N. 1997. Five continents. Rome, St Petersburg: IPGRI.

    Google Scholar 

  • Worede, M. 1991. An Ethiopian perspective on conservation and utilisation of plant genetic resources. IN: Jan Engels, N.N., Hawkes, J.G. and Worede, M. (eds.) Plant genetic resources of Ethiopia. New York, Cambridge University Press, pp. 3–21.

    Google Scholar 

  • Worede, M. 2011. Establishing a community seed supply system: community seed bank complexes in Africa. IN: Li Ching, L., Edwards, S., Scialabba, N. E. (eds.) Climate change and food systems resilience in sub-Saharan Africa. Rome, Italy: FAO, pp. 361–377.

    Google Scholar 

  • World Bank. 2004. Four Ethiopias: a regional characterization assessing Ethiopia’s growth potential and development obstacles. Washington, DC: World Bank.

    Google Scholar 

  • World Bank. 2007. Using value chain approaches in agribusiness and agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa: a methodological guide. Washington, DC: World Bank.

    Google Scholar 

  • World Bank. 2013. Agribusiness indicators: Kenya. Washington, DC: Agriculture and Environment Services, The World Bank.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Law and Government, Dublin City University, Dublin, Ireland

    Clare O’Grady Walshe

Authors
  1. Clare O’Grady Walshe
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Clare O’Grady Walshe .

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2019 The Author(s)

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

O’Grady Walshe, C. (2019). The Core Dilemma: Seed Sovereignty and Globalisation. In: Globalisation and Seed Sovereignty in Sub-Saharan Africa. International Political Economy Series. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-12870-8_1

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation