SAH cassava: Semi Autotrophic Hydroponics for Cassava Multiplication

A rapid quality seed delivery technology for cassava

Semi Autotrophic Hydroponics (SAH) for Cassava Multiplication is an innovative technology tailored for cassava propagation. Unlike traditional methods, SAH utilizes controlled environments with modified soil, plant roots, and limited water in trays. This fosters robust root growth while mitigating moisture-related diseases. The technique is cost-effective and adaptable, particularly for dispersed farming communities. SAH yields high-quality, disease-resistant cassava plantlets at a fraction of the production costs of tissue culture. This advancement not only expedites access to new cassava varieties but also bolsters overall productivity and resilience in cassava farming practices.

This technology is TAAT1 validated.

9•9

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

Project adoption7

Technology integrated in the 2PAU, EFPP, ENSURE, ERAVCDP, ESFSP, PADCV-PTA, and SAPZ-II projects.

Project	Countries	Beneficiaries	Budget (USD) & duration	Key figures
2PAU Emergency Food Production Programme	Côte d’Ivoire	Direct: 800,000	161.96 million 2022–2023	2,279 tons maize seeds distributed 134 million cassava cuttings distributed 84,144 tons fertilizers provided 30% increase in food production targeted
EFPP Guinea Emergency Food Production Programme	Guinea	Direct: 35,750 Indirect: 73,800	25.23 million 2022–2024	2,000 tons of rice seeds distributed 750 tons of maize seeds distributed 4,845 tons NPK provide 3,185 tons urea provide
ENSURE Enabling Environments for Sustainable Regional Agriculture Extension	Kenya Rwanda Burundi Democratic Republic of the Congo South Sudan Uganda Tanzania	Direct: 3,000,000	13.14 million 2024–2027	149,940 farmers trained 9,996 Training 2→3.5 tons/ha cereals production expected 350 agent trained
ERAVCDP Eastern Region Agricultural Value Chain Development Project	Angola	Direct: 1,200,000 Indirect: 1,000,000	211.4 million 2026–2031	2,500 ha irrigation systems rehabilitated 400 km rural roads constructed 9 markets and warehouses established 360,000 tons of fertilizers distributed
ESFSP Emergency Support to Food Security Project	Guinea-Bissau	Direct: 46,635 Indirect: 69,953	6.5 million 2022–2024	1,253 tons certified cereal seeds 1,350 tons fertilizer provided 32,096 hectares land seeded 37,335 tons additional production expected
PADCV-PTA Projet d’Appui au Developpement des Chaines de Valeurs en soutien au Programme de Transformation de l’Agriculture	Democratic Republic of the Congo	Direct: 900,000 Indirect: 2,000,000	321 million 2024–2029	62,000 tons certified seeds produced 5,200 ha rice fields developed 600 km resilient roads rehabilitated 30,000 people trained
SAPZ-II Multinational- Promotion of Sustainable Agricultural Value Chains in Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones	Nigeria	Direct: 1,100,000 Indirect: 900,000	625,00 million 2025–2030	1,000,000 jobs created 2 billion USD private investments mobilized 2,000,000 farmers trained 6,000 ha developed for Agro-Industrial Hubs

Figures in italic are from project plans and may change during implementation.

See project details ›

Adults 18 and over: Positive high

The poor: Positive medium

Under 18: Positive medium

Women: Positive medium

Climate adaptability: Highly adaptable

Farmer climate change readiness: Significant improvement

Biodiversity: No impact on biodiversity

Carbon footprint: Same amount of carbon released

Environmental health: Moderately improves environmental health

Soil quality: Does not affect soil health and fertility

Water use: Same amount of water used

Problem

Limited access to quality planting materials: Farmers may face difficulties obtaining sufficient quantities of healthy cassava planting materials.
Slow dissemination of improved varieties: Conventional propagation can delay the distribution of improved cassava varieties.
Low multiplication ratios: Limited multiplication efficiency can reduce the quantity of planting materials available.
Contamination risks: Conventional propagation methods can expose planting materials to pests and diseases.
Pathogen susceptibility: Planting materials from stem cuttings can be more susceptible to pests and diseases after establishment in the field.
Limited scalability: Traditional methods may not efficiently produce the large quantities of planting materials required to reach more farmers.

Solution

Accelerated multiplication: SAH enables faster production of cassava planting materials and facilitates quicker access to improved varieties.
Higher planting material availability: Improved multiplication ratios increase the quantity of planting materials that can be generated from available source material.
Reduced contamination risks: The controlled propagation environment helps minimize exposure to pests and diseases.
Improved plant health: Robust root development produces plantlets that are more resilient and less susceptible to pests and diseases after field establishment.
Scalable production: SAH provides a cost effective approach for producing large quantities of cassava planting materials.
Improved access for dispersed communities: The technology is described as adaptable to dispersed farming communities, making it suitable for improving access to quality planting materials where conventional supply systems are limited.

Key points to design your program

SAH Cassava (Semi-Autotrophic Hydroponics) is a rapid seed multiplication technology that produces high-quality, disease-free cassava planting materials at low cost, enabling the rapid dissemination of improved cassava varieties and strengthening seed systems. The technology can be integrated into cassava seed system development, food security, agricultural resilience, and rural livelihood programs to improve access to quality planting materials and increase cassava productivity. Its adoption contributes to SDGs 1 (No Poverty), 2 (Zero Hunger), and 3 (Good Health and Well-being).

To integrate this technology into your project, plan and budget for the following activities and prerequisites:

Assess cassava seed systems, demand for improved planting materials, propagation capacity, and infrastructure requirements in target areas.
Establish partnerships with IITA, national agricultural research and extension services, biotechnology companies, community-based seed multipliers, and other cassava value chain stakeholders to support technology dissemination and scaling.
Facilitate access to SAH propagation facilities, including growth chambers or screen houses, disease-free mother plants, and propagation materials.
Implement demonstration facilities and training for seed multipliers, nursery operators, extension agents, cooperatives, women's groups, and youth enterprises on SAH production techniques, quality assurance, and nursery management.
Support extension and dissemination activities to promote the production and distribution of certified cassava planting materials.
Promote the participation of women, youth, and smallholder farmers in cassava seed production, nursery enterprises, and technology adoption activities.
Implement monitoring, learning, and inclusion activities throughout the project lifecycle.
Track key indicators such as the number of plantlets produced, multiplication rates, adoption of improved varieties, seed quality, farmer adoption, and cassava productivity.

0.05 USD

operating cost per plant

0.05 - 1 USD

Production cost

116 %

ROI over 3 year

IP

Unknown

Scaling Readiness describes how complete a technology's development is and its ability to be scaled. It produces a score that measures a technology's readiness along two axes: the level of maturity of the idea itself, and the level to which the technology has been used so far.

Each axis goes from 0 to 9 where 9 is the “ready-to-scale” status. For each technology profile in the e-catalogs we have documented the scaling readiness status from evidence given by the technology providers. The e-catalogs only showcase technologies for which the scaling readiness score is at least 8 for maturity of the idea and 7 for the level of use.

The graph below represents visually the scaling readiness status for this technology, you can see the label of each level by hovering your mouse cursor on the number.

Scaling readiness score of this technology

Maturity of the idea 9 out of 9

Uncontrolled environment: validated

Level of use 9 out of 9

Common use by intended users, in the real world

Maturity of the idea										Level of use
9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9

Project	Countries	Beneficiaries	Budget (USD) & duration	Key figures
2PAU Emergency Food Production Programme	Côte d’Ivoire	Direct: 800,000	161.96 million 2022–2023	2,279 tons maize seeds distributed 134 million cassava cuttings distributed 84,144 tons fertilizers provided 30% increase in food production targeted
EFPP Guinea Emergency Food Production Programme	Guinea	Direct: 35,750 Indirect: 73,800	25.23 million 2022–2024	2,000 tons of rice seeds distributed 750 tons of maize seeds distributed 4,845 tons NPK provide 3,185 tons urea provide
ENSURE Enabling Environments for Sustainable Regional Agriculture Extension	Kenya Rwanda Burundi Democratic Republic of the Congo South Sudan Uganda Tanzania	Direct: 3,000,000	13.14 million 2024–2027	149,940 farmers trained 9,996 Training 2→3.5 tons/ha cereals production expected 350 agent trained
ERAVCDP Eastern Region Agricultural Value Chain Development Project	Angola	Direct: 1,200,000 Indirect: 1,000,000	211.4 million 2026–2031	2,500 ha irrigation systems rehabilitated 400 km rural roads constructed 9 markets and warehouses established 360,000 tons of fertilizers distributed
ESFSP Emergency Support to Food Security Project	Guinea-Bissau	Direct: 46,635 Indirect: 69,953	6.5 million 2022–2024	1,253 tons certified cereal seeds 1,350 tons fertilizer provided 32,096 hectares land seeded 37,335 tons additional production expected
PADCV-PTA Projet d’Appui au Developpement des Chaines de Valeurs en soutien au Programme de Transformation de l’Agriculture	Democratic Republic of the Congo	Direct: 900,000 Indirect: 2,000,000	321 million 2024–2029	62,000 tons certified seeds produced 5,200 ha rice fields developed 600 km resilient roads rehabilitated 30,000 people trained
SAPZ-II Multinational- Promotion of Sustainable Agricultural Value Chains in Special Agro-Industrial Processing Zones	Nigeria	Direct: 1,100,000 Indirect: 900,000	625,00 million 2025–2030	1,000,000 jobs created 2 billion USD private investments mobilized 2,000,000 farmers trained 6,000 ha developed for Agro-Industrial Hubs

Figures in italic are from project plans and may change during implementation.

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
Democratic Republic of the Congo	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Nigeria	–No ongoing testing	Tested	Adopted
Sierra Leone	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Tanzania	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Togo	–No ongoing testing	–Not tested	Adopted
Zambia	–No ongoing testing	–Not 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

Goal 2: zero hunger

Goal 3: good health and well-being

Tissue Culture Production: Begin by producing tissue-cultured (in vitro) cassava plantlets under semi-hydroponic and semi-controlled environmental conditions.

Mother Plant Preparation: Cut the tissue-cultured plantlets into mother plants. These mother plants will serve as the source for further propagation.

Tray Setup: Place the mother plants into trays with modified soil. Ensure that the trays are adequately spaced to allow for proper growth.

Growth Chamber Placement: Transfer the trays with the mother plants into a growth chamber. This chamber provides a controlled environment that is conducive for root development.

Recutting: After 2-3 weeks, recut the mother plants to obtain two plantlets from one. This step effectively multiplies the number of available plantlets.

Root Development: Return the recut plantlets to the growth chamber for an additional 6-8 weeks. During this period, the plantlets will develop well-formed roots.

Transportation: Trays can be transported in perforated cardboard boxes for up to 48 hours. This allows for convenient transportation to the planting site.

Planting: Plant the developed cassava plantlets directly in open fields or in screen houses for further breeding or production.

Last updated on Oct 1, 2026