Les systèmes d'approvisionnement en semences de mils et sorghos au Mali: Production, diffusion et conservation des variétés en milieu paysan

Abstract

Mali is a Sahelian country located in a center of great species diversity among which are listed millet and sorghum. These two species are the main staple food crops. On-farm production represents the main source of seeds for peasants. Various reasons such as drought or bad production motivate farmers to look permanently for more productive varieties. The peasants' seed system (PSS) which is informally organized is the principal source of seed supply for peasants and more important than the formal seed system (FSS). The research note presents the framework of diffusion of improved varieties in the FSS and compares it with the seed exchange mechanisms between peasants within the PSS framework. The discussion is related to the capacity of the two systems to ensure on the one hand the diffusion of genetic material adapted to the needs of peasants and on the other hand the conservation of local varieties. The emergence of Farmers' Organizations (FO), who want to play a key role in the production of certified seeds to improve the supply of their members with improved material, raises the question of the impact of this role of interface between these two seed systems. The analysis is based on various reports and interviews with people in charge at the regional representations of the FSS and on the work of Bazile et al. on PSS. The use of diagrams in Unified Modeling Language (UML) makes it possible to formalize a conceptual model of the two systems with their interactions. In general, none of these systems satisfies peasants' need of millet and/or sorghum seeds.