Putting that MDP Education to Work!

I have not written much yet about my actual “work” in Timor-Leste. Much of my time has focused on learning how Seeds of Life operates, and the challenges inherent in establishing a national seed system. In addition to this overview, Seeds of Life asked me to look at the business opportunities and commercialization possibilities in Timor-Leste’s seed system. In other words, how can the country move from a Big Government production and distribution of seeds to a more market-oriented system, one which focuses on private sector businesses and utilizes the public sector to merely fill in the gaps? (*) Well, that is a big question! I am interested in looking at how some of the more-developed farmers’ groups that Seeds of Life works with can begin to market and sell their quality seed (**). But before delving too far into such a study, Seeds of Life asked me to examine the costs of the formal seed production system. In other words, how much does the contracted certified seed cost to produce, process, and store? In looking at this, I was able to (*GASP*) utilize skills learned in the MPA in Development Practice program! Thanks to Global Food Systems, I was able to create a rough Value Chain Analysis of the formal seed component, based on the program’s data and discussions with contract farmers. I was also able to design an informal Interview Guide (thanks Methods!) and an ODK-based survey (thanks Matt Berg!) for the program to gather further details in the next season. Never mind that these latter two documents never got past my draft phase, as it turned out that no one had any desire or need to implement these… it was still nice to think I was utilizing my education!


Oddly, I am often drawn to a desire to utilize my Peace Corps skills rather than those learned in my graduate program. When discussing production limitations with farmers, I often offer to move into the village and provide trainings on some of the topics they ask for. They ask for organic input trainings; I could easily give a composting training, or show them how to utilize the Gliricidia living fences so ubiquitous along farmers’ fields as green manure. They ask for organizational training and business planning; I’d be happy to do some PACA with them (***). They ask for technical training; I could go over plant spacing, weeding, and other straightforward techniques. I could even get into more complex methods, at least for rice farming (if only to needle a certain professor with an SRI training report…). But as you may have expected, this is translated and then laughed off as a joke; I laugh to, but I was only partially joking. I miss that level of working with farmers, even if the (more office-based) work I am doing is still fascinating. Back in Madagascar, an RPCV told me once that I would never have the Peace Corps experience again, no matter what role I took in international development. I understand this, and accept it, and am happy with my summer’s program and hopeful for my professional future. But I still envy my classmates who are in rural communities rather than a capital, who see villagers more often than during a “field visit.” Of course, they probably envy my running water and air conditioning, so I should not complain too much… 

(*) rather than the government doing everything, from production to processing to storage to distribution, as it does now (and then it gives the seeds away for free)
(**) these farmers’ groups are the “informal” sector, as they produce un-certified, but high-quality, seed for their own future use and for local sale
(***) PACA: Participatory Analysis for Community Action