Network of 20 seed libraries first ever set up in Moldova

Chisinau, 27 July /MOLDPRES/ - A network of 20 seed libraries has been set up in Moldova for the first time ever. Also, 1,000 seeds were distributed to the newly created libraries. The initiative’s implementation was possible due to the financial support of the Czech Foreign Affairs Ministry, provided through the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).    

The seed libraries have been working successfully in the Czech Republic for more years. Anyone, from local farmers and people fond of agriculture, up to residents of cities, public organizations and young people, can come to the local seed library and borrow diverse species of seeds, in order to cultivate them, as well as to produce a new generation of seeds in the next season and return them to the library for preservation as donation.

The Czech partners provided also the training of about 60 Moldovan farmers, local residents and gardeners about the management of seed libraries. The managers serve as ‘’rescuers of seeds,’’ whose task is to preserve and prevent various seeds from disappearance.

„I am happy that the Czech Republic can share its experience in such an important field in Moldova’s development as agriculture, and especially the ecological agriculture, through the implementation of diverse projects on transfer of innovations, as the United though Seeds project, backed within the Czech Innovation Fund, as well as other cooperation projects, financed by the Czech Development Agency,’’ Ambassador of the Czech Republic to Moldova Stanislav Kázecký said.    

A project manager at UNDP Moldova, Maria Țarigradean, said this initiative was focused on the creation of solutions adapted to the conditions specific of the local community.   

The libraries were created due to the partnership between the Moldova’s Garden Public Association and the Semínkovna Czech initiative. The executive director of Moldova’s Garden Public Association, Ana Coutinho, said the investment in the local seeds and of farmers meant investments in food products, as well as in green economy and nature.     

In the long run, the seed libraries might be digitalized, contributing to the intelligent organization and management of data on the local agro-biodiversity and to the consolidation of the food security, both locally and internationally.  

Photo: UNDP