The indicator tracks the number of active breeders in the public and private sectors who are working on one or more of the priority crops. Disaggregated by crop and gender of breeder. "Active breeder" is defined as one who is currently engaged in breeding/maintaining of a variety. Information is collected from seed companies, the National Agricultural Research Institute (NARI), and universities.

Approved varieties are released by the government agency in charge of the seed industry. In most cases, newly-released varieties are listed in a national plant variety catalogue. The indicator tracks the number of varieties that have been released in the last ten years.

Foundation (also known as basic) seed is pure seed stock used to grow certified seed. Seed companies that do not breed their own varieties access basic seed from NARI, international agricultural research institutions, universities or other seed companies. The indicator tracks the availability of foundation seed by collecting information on the volumes of basic seeds produced by seed companies and NARI, the timeliness and quality of supply of basic seed from public institutions, and seed companies' opinion on the availability of foundation seed.

The assumption underlying this indicator is that, as a result of breeding efforts, new varieties respond better than old varieties to challenges such as climate change, new pests, and diseases. The indicator tracks the age of varieties sold based on the year when the variety was released by the regulator. Information is sourced from seed companies, government institutions, and the national plant variety catalogue.

"Special attributes/features" address certain agronomic, nutritional, and social challenges or demands by the food industry; examples include varieties that are climate-smart (e.g., drought-tolerant and early-maturing), gender-responsive (e.g., quick-cooking), nutrition-enhanced (e.g., fortified with iron), demanded by industry (e.g., high oil content), etc. The indicator tracks the number of varieties that have at least one "special" attribute/feature. Information is collected from the national variety release catalogue and is presented as the percentage of all varieties released in the last three (3) years.

The indicator tracks the number of active, registered companies/producers engaged in the production and sale of certified seeds of at least one of the priority crops in the data collection year. Owner/top management are disaggregated by gender. The indicator also tracks the aggregate volume of seed production and sales for the priority crops.

As a measure of market power concentration, this indicator tracks combined market share of the four largest seed companies (based on sales volumes). The Herfindahl-Hirschman Index (HHI) is also used to track market concentration.

Tracking government involvement shows the impact a state-owned seed company has on the seed sector. This indicator tracks the seed sales by companies that are owned by the government (wholly or partly) and presents them as a percentage of total seed sales.

This indicator tracks the length of the import/export processes and includes time spent in obtaining official documents and clearance of consignment measured in days, import tariffs, the total volume of certified seed imports and exports, source/destination countries, and seed companies' level of satisfaction with the import/export processes.

The length of variety release (in months) is measured from the date a variety is submitted for National Performance Trials to when it is approved for release by the Variety Release Committee. The indicator also tracks DUS, VCU and other costs associated with the variety release process.

This indicator tracks whether the country has a seed policy framework in place, including seed policy, seed law, regulations, plant protection law, etc. It also tracks whether/to what extent national seed regulations are harmonized with applicable regional seed instruments.

The indicator tracks the degree of implementation of the country's seed policies and laws, if requisite institutions/committees are in place, status of the national variety catalogue and the applicable regional seed regulations. It also tracks seed companies' level of satisfaction with the implementation of seed regulations in the country.

Inspectors have multiple important roles, including the testing of seed performance in the field and at processing and inspection of seed dealers and agents at the retail level. The indicator tracks the number of seed inspectors, public and private by gender. It also tracks seed digitization of inspection processes and companies' level of satisfaction with the adequacy of seed inspectors.

Counterfeit seed is a growing problem in most African countries, threatening smallholder farmers who unknowingly purchase inferior quality grain labeled as certified seed. The indicator tracks the number of counterfeit seed cases reported in the country, along with measures used by the government to stamp out fake seeds, digitization of such measures and collaboration with private sector. It also assesses the level of satisfaction reported by seed companies with government efforts to counter fake seeds.

The indicator assesses the government seed subsidy program (if applicable) by tracking the following four components:

Well-functioning national seed sectors have effective coordinating institutions that work well together, following rules and procedures in clearly defined legal instruments. This indicator collects information on the above aspects of the national seed sector including inter- and intra-ministerial coordination and collaboration with the private sector.

In many countries, national seed trade associations play a key role between the private sector and government in seed-sector policy processes. This indicator tracks the performance of the national seed trade association from the point of view of its members, including governance, management, representation, effectiveness in advocacy, and value to members.

Well-functioning agricultural extension services are critical to the successful adoption of improved seeds by smallholder farmers. The indicator tracks the ratio of the number of public and private extension officers to the number of farming households. It disaggregates number of extension agents by gender and tracks digitization of extension services, if government engages it to promote new varieties.

Agro-dealers play a key role in closing the last mile in Africa's seed distribution systems and are often the main point of sale for certified seed. The indicator tracks the ratio of the number of agro-dealers to the number of agricultural households in the country. Agro-dealers are disaggregated by gender. The indicator also tracks accreditation processes and if any agro-dealers target women farmers.

Because most farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa are small-scale, making seed available in small, more affordable packages is a good way to increase adoption rates among smallholder farmers. This indicator tracks the availability of seed in small packages (defined as 2 kgs or smaller) presented as the percentage of overall seed sales.

The indicator tracks the ratio of the price of certified seed (per kg) and the farm-gate price of grain (per kg), at the time of planting. This data point is important as many smallholder farmers end up making a choice between purchasing seed from the formal sector or planting grain.

Responsiveness to customer demand and feedback is a key facet of a successful business. This indicator collects information on marketing strategies and quality assurance systems employed by seed companies/producers. It measures the extent to which seed companies are implementing practices that allow them to better serve their customers (smallholder farmers).