Preserving farmer wisdom: the value of African seeds

Africa’s Vegetable Genebank, based at the World Vegetable Center in Arusha, Tanzania, has achieved a historic milestone by sending its largest-ever collection of traditional African vegetable seeds to the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway’s Arctic region

This marks a major breakthrough in agricultural preservation and food security for the continent.

The recent shipment contained over 3,000 seed samples from 109 different vegetable and legume species, gathered from more than 30 African nations stretching from Senegal to Kenya, and from Mali to Madagascar. Among the seeds secured are nutrient-rich crops such as amaranth, jute mallow, Bambara groundnut, African eggplant and okra - varieties that play a vital role in boosting nutrition, improving livelihoods, and helping smallholder farmers adapt to changing climatic conditions.

With this latest deposit, the genebank has now protected over half of its 10,500 seed accessions in the Svalbard facility. This global backup ensures that Africa’s valuable vegetable diversity is shielded from risks like extreme weather, natural disasters or regional conflicts that could threaten seed collections.

The initiative has been made possible through strong partnerships with key organisations, including the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad), the Global Crop Diversity Trust (Crop Trust), and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) under the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.

Sognigbe N’Danikou, head of the genebank and a senior scientist at WorldVeg, said the initiative represents more than just seed preservation. He emphasised that this deposit is “a demonstration of our commitment to preserving Africa’s vegetable heritage.” He added that each seed holds “farmer wisdom, local adaptation and cultural value,” and that securing them in Svalbard “lays a strong foundation for Africa’s food security and resilience.”

Beyond conservation, the genebank continues to share seeds with farmers, schools and researchers across Africa. Recent outreach has supported displaced farmers in Sudan and local agricultural projects in Uganda, Kenya, Benin and Somalia ensuring that the continent’s rich crop genetics remain part of daily farming life.

During the same period, the Svalbard Global Seed Vault received over 21,000 new seed accessions from around 20 genebanks globally, bringing its total collection to more than 1.37mn samples.

This record contribution highlights Africa’s growing leadership in biodiversity conservation and strengthens the continent’s path toward a more secure, sustainable and climate-resilient agricultural future.