Cassava Agribusiness Seed System (CASS)
Cassava is a vital crop for millions of smallholder farmers in Rwanda and Burundi. However, in recent years it has been heavily affected by diseases such as Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD) and Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD).
These diseases can reduce crop yields by 20-100% in severe cases. Additionally, cassava is a vegetative-propagated crop and has no formal systems of seed delivery in Rwanda and Burundi.
Farmers’ access to quality cassava seeds is one of the top challenges to productivity in sub-Saharan Africa. Therefore, SPARK and its partners are testing, evaluating and upscaling cassava seeds with strong resistance to disease.
CASS strengthens the capacity of farmers, cooperatives and partner organisations through gender and youth-sensitive training and coaching. Additionally, new cassava agribusiness models are also being tested with different groups of farmers to ensure effective monitoring and evaluation.
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