Growing together: Integrating farmers into value chains with sustainable finance

Growing together: Integrating farmers into value chains with sustainable finance
HomeNewsSurvey on Seed Potato System Conducted with Farmers and Inspectors in Naryn and Osh Regions

Survey on Seed Potato System Conducted with Farmers and Inspectors in Naryn and Osh Regions

From May 2 to 7, 2025, a field visit was organized in At-Bashy district of Naryn region and Chong-Alay district of Osh region under the “Value Chain Agro Finance” project. The visit aimed to monitor the implementation of the seed potato production system and gather feedback from farmers and field inspectors.

The monitoring was conducted by Hamid Mamashukurov, national coordinator of the KG-FRAS platform, and Simon Schütter, an international expert in agricultural advisory system development. They visited farmers’ fields, held individual interviews with inspectors and farmers, and collected opinions on the current progress of the project.

Objectives of the monitoring:

  • Assess the level of knowledge application from trainings;

  • Identify obstacles faced by inspectors and farmers in their work;

  • Collect suggestions for improving the work;

  • Determine technical and organizational needs.

 

Key findings:
📌 Participant readiness:
Farmers and inspectors gave positive feedback on the quality of the 2024 trainings. All participants attended modules 3 to 5. Knowledge levels were higher in Chong-Alay, while At-Bashy participants expressed a need for additional training.

📌 Equipment shortages:
Inspectors reported a lack of essential field tools (e.g., soil moisture and pH meters), which hinders accurate seed quality assessment.

📌 Paper reporting:
Filling out paper reports takes a lot of time. Introducing electronic forms was suggested to simplify data collection.

📌 Information gaps:
Some farmers do not fully understand inspection purposes and seed certification requirements. Increased information and awareness efforts are needed.

📌 Inspector certification:
There is currently no official certification process for inspectors, which reduces trust and raises legal concerns.

📌 Experience exchange:
Participants expressed interest in organizing interregional experience exchange meetings.

Conclusion:
The field visit highlighted both the strengths and weaknesses of the seed system initiative. The “Value Chain Agro Finance” project will continue improving the process through digitalization, institutional development, and additional training.