CSE Model: Cassava Seed Entrepreneur Business Model

Transforming Cassava Farming Through Entrepreneurial Innovation!

The CSE Business Model is a streamlined, government-endorsed approach that trains and certifies local entrepreneurs in basic seed production, uses a simple digital platform for quality control, links producers to ready buyers through pre-agreed contracts, provides small-scale financing via local cooperatives, and is fully scalable—already delivering over 80 million disease-free cuttings worth USD 1.5 million in Tanzania and 34 million cuttings worth USD 220 000 in Nigeria each year.

This technology is pre-validated.

9•3

Scaling readiness: idea maturity 9/9; level of use 3/9

Adults 18 and over: Positive high

Increased access to quality seeds enhances productivity and income, improving livelihoods.

The poor: Positive medium

Access to affordable, certified seeds leads to higher yields and income, contributing to poverty alleviation.

Women: Positive high

With 32–34% female participation, the model promotes gender inclusion and economic empowerment.

Climate adaptability: Highly adaptable

The model is operational across diverse agro-ecological zones—including arid, semi-arid, sub-humid, and humid climates—demonstrating strong performance under varied weather and growing conditions

Farmer climate change readiness: Moderate improvement

Its improves farmer access to clean, certified seed, often of climate-resilient varieties, and supports agronomic training that helps farmers better cope with pest outbreaks and erratic weather patterns.

Biodiversity: Positive impact on biodiversity

By enabling the multiplication and distribution of a broader range of improved and disease-resistant cassava varieties, the model encourages varietal diversity and reduces the spread of pests and diseases.

Carbon footprint: A bit less carbon released

The decentralized nature of the seed system reduces long-distance transportation and reliance on repeated planting due to poor seed quality, leading to lower emissions compared to informal or government-led seed supply chains.

Environmental health: Moderately improves environmental health

The model promotes better agronomic practices and disease management, which can reduce the misuse of agrochemicals and improve the overall environmental conditions in farming communities.

Soil quality: Improves soil health and fertility

Cassava Seed Entrepreneurs are trained in proper land preparation and crop rotation practices, contributing to better soil structure and nutrient balance over time.

Water use: Same amount of water used

The model does not directly affect irrigation or water consumption. However, improved planting materials may indirectly improve water use efficiency through better crop establishment.

Problem

Unregulated Seed Quality: Inconsistent germplasm leads to average yields of 8 t/ha, well below potential (> 20 t/ha) (RTB-CGIAR, 2023).
Disease Build-Up: Farmer-to-farmer sharing propagates cassava mosaic and brown streak viruses.
Dependence on Free Distribution: One-off giveaways create a “dependency mindset,” discouraging investment in clean seed.
Private Sector Apathy: Lack of profitability signals means seed companies avoid cassava, perpetuating supply gaps.

Solution

Quality-Assured Seed Production: Certified clean cuttings reduce disease incidence by up to 70 % (IITA field trial, 2023).
Entrepreneurship & Inclusivity: 32–34 % female participation fosters women’s economic empowerment and gender equality (IITA-CSE M&E, 2024).
Digital Traceability: SeedTracker™ reduces paperwork, accelerates certification by 50 % and builds trust in seed origins.
Market-Driven Pricing: Entrepreneurs negotiate fair prices via established networks, improving farmer willingness-to-pay and enabling cost-recovery.
Financial Leverage: SACCOS/RLF loans with 8–12 % interest catalyze investment; average loan size USD 500 supports ~5 acres of multiplication.

Key points to design your program

The Cassava Seed Entrepreneur (CSE) Business Model catalyzes sustainable seed systems by formalizing multiplication, quality certification and market linkages for certified cassava planting materials. It advances development priorities—food security, gender equity, climate resilience and private–public partnerships—while fostering self-reliant rural enterprises. To embed the CSE Model in your programmes, consider the following project-design activities:

Consortium Building & Coordination: Assemble a coalition of NGOs, research institutes, government agencies and funders. Establish a governance board to align objectives, budgets and M&E frameworks.
Project Design & Funding: Co-develop project plans covering a 3–5 year horizon, with clear milestones on number of CSEs, cuttings produced and revenue targets. Mobilize grants or blended-finance facilities to cover training, digital-platform fees and initial working capital.
Technical Assistance & Knowledge Management: Deploy agronomists, seed-systems specialists and digital-platform experts to support roll-out. Curate an online toolkit: manuals, trainer videos, dashboard templates and community-of-practice portals.
Digital Platform Deployment: Fund SeedTracker™ customization to local languages, regulatory workflows and reporting requirements. Set up a centralized M&E dashboard for donors to monitor gender equity, geographic coverage and impact metrics.
Capacity Strengthening: Sponsor regional “seed labs” where CSEs can learn best practices and share innovations. Offer small grants for CSE-led trials of new climate-resilient cassava varieties.
Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning (MEL): Design a results framework with SMART indicators—e.g., cuttings/year, farmer adoption rate, women’s income increase. Conduct periodic impact evaluations and disseminate lessons learned via policy briefs and webinars.
Advocacy & Sustainability Planning: Use aggregated data to advocate for inclusion of the CSE Model in national seed policies and budgets. Plan exit strategies, strengthening local institutions to take full ownership of training, certification and finance linkages.

79 %

ROI estimated by the technology provider

IP

Open source / open access

Countries with a green colour: Tested & adopted
Countries with a bright green colour: Adopted
Countries with a yellow colour: Tested
Countries with a blue colour: Testing ongoing

Countries where the technology is being tested or has been tested and adopted
Country	Testing ongoing	Tested	Adopted
Kenya	Testing ongoing	–Not tested	–Not adopted
Nigeria	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Rwanda	Testing ongoing	–Not tested	–Not adopted
Tanzania	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted

This technology can be used in the colored agro-ecological zones. Any zones shown in white are not suitable for this technology.

Agro-ecological zones where this technology can be used
AEZ	Subtropic - warm	Subtropic - cool	Tropic - warm	Tropic - cool
Arid	–	–	–	–
Semiarid	–		–
Subhumid
Humid

Source: HarvestChoice/IFPRI 2009

The United Nations Sustainable Development Goals that are applicable to this technology.

Goal 1: no poverty

By boosting farmer incomes through higher yields and seed‐business revenue, it helps lift rural households out of poverty.

Goal 2: zero hunger

Clean, certified planting materials cut disease losses and raise cassava productivity, improving food security.

Goal 5: gender equality

With 32–34 % female entrepreneur participation, it empowers women economically and promotes equal opportunity.

Goal 8: decent work and economic growth

Fosters rural jobs and small enterprises in seed production, driving inclusive economic growth.

Goal 17: partnerships for the goals

Leverages collaboration among governments, NGOs, finance institutions and private actors to scale impact.

Conduct Market Assessment: Evaluate farmers' willingness to pay for improved seeds and identify demand for specific cassava varieties.
Identify and Recruit Entrepreneurs: Select individuals with business acumen and interest in seed production.
Provide Training: Offer comprehensive training in seed agronomy, business management, and quality assurance.
Facilitate Certification: Assist entrepreneurs in registering with national seed authorities and using digital tools for certification.
Establish Market Linkages: Connect seed entrepreneurs with processors, agro-dealers, and farmer associations to ensure market access.
Provide Financial Support: Enable access to credit through SACCOS and RLFs to support business operations.
Monitor and Support: Offer ongoing technical assistance and monitor progress to ensure quality and sustainability.