The draft COM-SHIP was validated by the COMESA Member States, private seed sector and Civil Society Organisations 7th-11th April, 2014 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. COM-SHIP is COMESA’s strategic plan to domesticate the COMESA Seed Trade Harmonization Regulations in line with the COMESA CAADP Regional Compact. The key interventions in COM-SHIP include the following:

• National seed regulatory reforms aligned to the COMESA Seed Trade Harmonisation Regulations that will also include capacity building of the national seed bodies to undertake seed certification, release varieties and conduct phytosanitary and quarantine measures effectively and efficiently;
• Sensitization and awareness creation of the COMESA Seed Trade Harmonisation Regulations;
• Road map for the COMESA Plant Variety Protection agreed;
• Monitoring and improvement through review of annual status of implementation of the COMESA Seed System;
• Building capacity of small-holder farmers to increase crop productivity as well as participating in the production of improved or quality and improved seed by small-holder farmers within the seed value chain;
• Support private sector capacity in production of quality seed; and
• Support of COMESA Member States production of country-preferred seed.

On 28 November 2013, ECDPM and Aprodev have organised a workshop on related issues: Roundtable on Sustainable African Agriculture and CAADP 2014 Review: Putting Smallholder Farmers at the Centre of the CAADP Process.