Saadan Amon Edson

Saadan Edson is a Senior Research Associate at the Alliance of Bioversity International and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), based in Arusha, Tanzania. He has 10 years of experience in agricultural research, with a particular focus on strengthening seed systems in Tanzania and across Africa. His career has evolved from crop breeding to addressing critical seed demand and supply bottlenecks, with research aimed at accelerating varietal turnover for crops whose seed systems remain underdeveloped or underutilized.
Prior to joining CIAT, Saadan worked as a Product Development Specialist at East-West Seed (EWS) and as a Research Associate at the International Potato Center (CIP) in Tanzania, where he contributed to research and development initiatives that enhanced seed system performance and technology adoption.
He holds a Bachelor of Science in Horticulture and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) in Agribusiness both from Sokoine University of Agriculture. He is currently pursuing a PhD at Wageningen University & Research (WUR) under the Biosystematics Group, where his research focuses on understanding the demand and supply dynamics of sweetpotato seed systems in Tanzania.