AgrDataSci/issd-wcdi-ethiopia

Analysis of on-farm testing data generated by WCDI and ISSD in Ethiopia ## Replication data and code for: "Citizen science in Ethiopia contests prevailing assumptions in formal seed systems concerning men and women smallholders’ preferences for crop varieties and traits, revealing their latent demand for diversity" > Gareth Denis Borman, Kauê de Sousa, Mohammed Hassena Beko, Legesse Abate, Mirjam Schaap, Martina Occelli, Jacob van Etten ### Highlights - Central planning in Ethiopia’s formal seed systems limits participation of non-state actors - Breeders and seed producers have insufficient ways of knowing what farmers want - A citizen science effort conducted on-farm variety trials with 29,523 smallholders - We test four hypotheses regarding sex-disaggregated trait preferences of 361 varieties of 12 crops - We position citizen science as an approach to integrated seed sector development ### Abstract **Context:** Ethiopia’s diverse agroecology and agronomy include a vast portfolio of crops. Plant breeding, agricultural extension, and the seed sector are centrally planned for major food security crops. This limits non-state actors’ participation and results in a limited understanding of farmers’ preferred crops and varieties. **Objective:** We contest prevailing assumptions in Ethiopia’s formal seed systems about farmers’ varietal preferences, through four hypotheses: 1. Men and women smallholders’ varietal and trait preferences do not differ significantly; 2. Yield is the strongest trait driving farmers’ varietal preference; 3. Farmers prefer newly released varieties; and 4. Farmers prefer superiority over diversity. **Methods:** We conducted sex-balanced citizen science on-farm variety selection trials among 29,523 smallholders across a wide range of agro-ecologies. We applied a tricot (triadic comparison of technology) experimental design, whereby each participating farmer received small packages of three randomly assigned varieties from at least 361 varieties of 12 different species of cereals, pulses, and oilseeds to assess un …