Institutional strengthening of rice seed based on the community in supporting food security

Seedling-system transformation has been gradually shifted the seed authority management from farmer and breeder to multinational companies. This circumstance should be balanced with farmer capability in producing seeds independently to prevent capitalization. Thus, the Ministry of Agriculture has declared the seed self-reliance villages as a community-based program to face those challenges. This study aimed to evaluate the importance of institutional strengthening through the seed self-reliance villages program to improve food security and increase farmer welfare. This research was conducted based on the survey method and Focus Group Discussion (FGD) at five districts (Kendal, Boyolali, Tegal, Klaten, and Sragen) in Central Java. A survey through informal interview involved 30 representative participants from farmer groups of each district, while the FGD was performed through in-depth discussion with 22 participants, including farmers, extension or agricultural officers, and other related stakeholders. The result showed that global agreement obstructs the community-based seedling system, particularly in breeding and certification. A community-based rice seedling institution threatened to quit due to asymmetric interaction between the actors. Moreover, this seedling institution should be strengthened in the technological aspect and property right management. In the end, the government’s role as a facilitator is critical in this community-based seedling institution, especially in capital aspects.