The Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA) has launched its “Seed is Life” campaign—an urgent initiative promoting Farmer-Managed Seed Systems (FMSS) and resisting the spread of chemical-intensive, monoculture industrial agriculture across the continent.
The campaign aligns with International Seeds Day, amplifying the voices of those advocating for patent-free seeds and the preservation of traditional seed systems—the very foundation of Africa’s agricultural legacy.
For centuries, small-scale African farmers have been the backbone of the continent’s agricultural resilience, cultivating diverse, nutritious, and climate-adapted crops that feed more than 80 percent of the population.
However, these deeply rooted practices are now under threat from industrial agriculture and multinational seed corporations—pressures often rooted in colonial legacies and global trade dynamics.
AFSA’s “Seed is Life” campaign seeks to empower communities to reclaim their seed sovereignty and protect Africa’s agricultural heritage for future generations.
Dr. Million Belay, General Coordinator of AFSA, highlighted the urgency of the campaign:
“Governments are capitulating to corporate pressure, supporting the industrial seed system through regional agreements on intellectual property and trade. These frameworks prioritize uniform, industrial seeds and export-oriented commodity production—undermining the vital diversity of farmers’ seeds and their invaluable knowledge. We must shift focus. Policies must support local seed systems and agroecological farming, empowering farmers within a food sovereignty framework.”
The campaign’s goals are to mobilize support and action for FMSS across Africa and advocate for their legal recognition and protection as a cornerstone of biodiversity and food sovereignty in the face of industrial agriculture and genetically modified organisms (GMOs).
Seed is Life campaign aims at Elevating FMSS as essential to biodiversity and food sovereignty across Africa, advocating for policy reform and legal frameworks that recognize and support FMSS, protecting farmers’ rights to save, exchange, and sell their own seeds and building a continent-wide movement to educate the public on the ecological, nutritional, and food security benefits of FMSS.
“Farmers’ seeds are not merely a resource—they are the lifeblood of Africa’s food sovereignty,” said Hakim Baliraine, Chairperson of AFSA. “They represent resilience, affordability, adaptability to climate change, and the capacity to withstand stress. Through the ‘Seed is Life’ campaign, we are championing the strength and diversity of indigenous farming practices, ensuring African food systems remain in the hands of those who have sustained them for generations.”
To mark the campaign’s launch, AFSA called for integration of FMSS into national policy frameworks.
“By adopting these recommendations, policymakers can help forge a sustainable, biodiverse future where African food systems are resilient, culturally rich, and free from corporate dominance—aligning with global commitments to uphold farmer rights and food sovereignty.” AFSA said.
