The National Agricultural Seeds Council (NASC)has improved the capacity of 25 newly engaged officers on digital seeds certification using the National Seed tracker platform.
This is even as the Council has on boarded the license Seed Inspectors in some selected pilot states.
Giving his opening remarks at the two-day training workshop on digital seed certification, the Acting Director General, Dr. Ishiak Othman Khalid, said the council is committed to building the capacity of newly recruited certification and scientific office with deep interest in the digital seed certification appraisal system to ensure the system is at par with international best practices.
He said the Council is committed to ensuring that seed companies have the best improved productivity, increased competitiveness for their seeds in the global seed space ad increase crop yield in order to compete in the international space.
“Our fundamental focus as a Council is on progressive strengthening and transforming of the practices of stakeholders in the seed value chain, such that the value creation at each level of the chain creates enough vested interest for all players to keep the system going.
“As part of our commitment to ensure national food security through agricultural sustainability and development of seed industry in Nigeria, the Council has a world-class molecular diagnostic facility which has the capacity to detect pathogens, variety identification using SSR markers, train purity testing, zygosity test, transgenic detection in GMOs among other tests using diagnostics tools.
The national Seeds tracker which is an ICT solution to integrate supply chains functions ad life seed systems to the Next Generation. Its vision is to organise seed production information, enable seed quality monitoring and certification and empower every seed value chain actor to foster sustainable seed production for high productivity and profit.