Unlocking pre-basic bean seed supply bottlenecks through mutually beneficial public-private sector partnerships in Malawi and Zimbabwe

Common bean is a widely cultivated and consumed pulse crop in both Malawi and Zimbabwe. Market opportunities are frustrated lack quality grain despite prolific release of improved varieties. Similar to most other countries, the production of certified seed is liberalized, but early generation seed still remains a preserve of the public sector. However, the public sector is often inadequately resourced to produce sufficient early generation seed (EGS) and this has bottleneck effect on certified seed and grain production. This results in delayed use of newly released varieties and/or shortage of improved bean seed on the market. This paper presents possible solutions to the EGS challenge.