When Dr. Joe DeVries, the former President of Seed Systems Group, introduced the Exbaika rice variety from Ghana to Togo’s Institut Togolais de Recherche Agronomique (ITRA) in 2022, few could have predicted the transformational journey that would unfold. Today, as we reflect on this remarkable success story, Exbaika stands as a testament to what becomes possible when rigorous science, strategic partnerships, and farmer-centered innovation converge.
Under the IDRC-funded PASSAT project (Projet d’appui au système semencier et à l’adoption des semences améliorées au Togo), Exbaika underwent comprehensive testing across all of Togo’s agro-ecological zones in 2022. The results were nothing short of extraordinary. In multi-locational trials conducted by ITRA, Exbaika consistently outperformed competing varieties, not marginally but decisively. In Participatory Varietal Selection (PVS) exercises across every zone, farmers ranked Exbaika first, recognizing in this variety something they had long sought: a rice variety that could deliver both exceptional yields and market appeal.
SSG’s strategic support to four emerging seed companies (LE PAYSAN, DOMAH, TALIPAK, and SPIDD) helped build the critical middle layer of the value chain. Through technical capacity building and financial support, these companies have become engines of seed availability. During the 2024-2025 agricultural campaign, these four partners produced 63.875 tons of quality-certified Exbaika seeds, representing 24% of the total 270.375 metric tons of certified seeds produced under SSG/AGRA support for maize, rice, sorghum, cowpea, and groundnut.
The variety’s integration into demonstration plots nationwide, supported by ICAT’s field agents and 300 Village-Based Advisors (VBAs), ensures that knowledge of Exbaika’s advantages continues to spread to new farming communities. The distribution of 100,000 small seed packs during the 2024-2025 season, including substantial Exbaika allocations, provides farmers with low-risk opportunities to experience the variety’s benefits firsthand.
This superior adaptability did not go unnoticed. As reported by the “Institut de Conseil et d’Appui Technique (ICAT)” field agents, farmers in Kpélé Tutu captured Exbaika’s transformative potential in their own words: “Its aroma fills the cooking pot… we can sell this at double the price!” Another farmer simply declared: “Exbaika isn’t just rice, it’s Togo’s gold.” These aren’t marketing slogans; they’re authentic expressions from farming communities recognizing a game-changing innovation.
Field results validate this system’s approach. During recent field visits, observers noted Exbaika’s exceptional performance across diverse environments. In the Savanna, Kara, Central, and Plateau-Est regions, the variety demonstrated consistent superiority: outstanding drought tolerance enabling good tillering, a slightly taller stature than IR 841, and a distinctive, highly aromatic quality. Farmers reported that even when drought devastated other varieties, Exbaika delivered harvestable yields.
The numbers tell a compelling story. While Togo’s national rice average languishes at 2.5 tons per hectare, Exbaika delivers 8 tons per hectare in farmers’ fields, with a yield potential of 10 tons per hectare under optimal conditions. But Exbaika’s excellence extends far beyond productivity metrics. Its drought tolerance, critical in a country where rainfed lowlands dominate rice cultivation, provides farmers with resilience to climate variability. These characteristics make Exbaika the obvious champion variety to raise awareness among smallholder farmers nationwide.
Exbaika’s emergence came at a pivotal moment. For years, IR 841 had been the variety of choice in Togo. First introduced in 1973, IR 841 was the dominant variety until 2010, when farmers began complaining about its varietal purity. Since then, ITRA has been working to identify a new variety to replace IR 841. Jasmine 85 was identified, but it received little promotion until the beginning of the IDRC-funded project in 2022, when awareness of Jasmine 85 rose significantly. Yet Jasmine 85’s longer maturity period and higher water requirements made it increasingly mismatched with the country’s predominant rainfed lowland ecology. As one field comparison starkly illustrated: while Jasmine 85 and IR 841 struggled under drought conditions in northwestern Togo, Exbaika demonstrated remarkable resilience, achieving good tillering and strong yields despite moisture stress.
Exbaika’s journey from research station to national prominence exemplifies SSG’s proven public-private-producer partnership model. ITRA’s foundation seed production increased dramatically from 1.5 metric tons in 2024 to 8,190 metric tons in 2025, a remarkable 5,460% increase made possible through SSG/AGRA support. This upstream investment created the foundation for downstream transformation.
Perhaps most exciting is how Exbaika is catalyzing market innovation. SPIDD’s branding of Exbaika as “Riz des Chefs” (Chefs’ Rice) reflects a sophisticated positioning strategy, targeting luxury urban and export markets willing to pay premium prices for superior quality. This value-addition approach transforms farmers from commodity producers into suppliers of differentiated premium products, fundamentally altering the economics of rice farming.
This market positioning is supported by Exbaika’s intrinsic qualities. Its strong aroma and 84% long-grain rate make it genuinely competitive in quality-driven markets. Farmers’ testimony that they can sell Exbaika for double the typical price isn’t hyperbole; it reflects real market responses to superior product attributes.
Today, Exbaika has achieved what few rice varieties do: it has become the primary rice variety for almost all rice growers who have had the chance to know it during and after the SSG-supported project, and the cornerstone of all government rice programs. This isn’t the result of dependence on mandates or subsidies; it’s the organic outcome of farmers, extension agents, and policymakers recognizing its superior performance.
As Exbaika seed demand continues to rise steadily, SSG’s ongoing support for ITRA, seed companies, ICAT, and agro-dealers ensures that supply systems can meet this demand. The challenge ahead is to maintain this momentum: ensuring the availability of foundation seed, supporting seed companies’ professionalization, strengthening VBA networks, and facilitating farmers’ transition from small-pack testing to commercial-scale adoption.
The Exbaika story also holds promise beyond Togo’s borders. The variety’s exceptional performance sparks interest in neighboring countries, positioning it as a potential regional success rather than merely a national one. This cross-border potential underscores the value of regional knowledge exchange and the sharing of varieties, exactly the kind of South-South collaboration African agriculture needs more of.
