Monday, March 3, 2008

Is Africa rejecting genetic engineering in food and agriculture?

This booklet outlines recent key trends, developments and actors in the debate on genetic engineering (GE) in food and agriculture in Africa. It also highlights a number of the key talking points including the harmonisation of bio-safety legislation, the new green revolution in Africa, and genetic diversity.

It is argued that more than 10 years have passed since Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) were first commercialised in the world, yet out of more than 50 African countries, only South Africa has explicitly taken bio-safety decisions to authorise the commercial cultivation and importation of GMOs for the purposes of food, feed and processing.

Key points highlighted throughout recent trends include:

  • several African countries such as Sudan, Angola and Zambia have fiercely resisted receiving GM food aid, precipitating reforms in food aid policies internationally
  • the GM push in Africa has recorded several significant setbacks and failures, with Florence Wambugu’s GM sweet potato in Kenya and the Gates Foundation’s GM sorghum in South Africa being the most prominent
  • this rejection represents a huge set back for crucial components of the ‘New Green Revolution in Africa’ push, which is heavily funded by the Gates Foundation
  • 2007 has not been a good year for GE in South Africa. The first ever GM cassava field trials also faced the thumbs down from the South African regulatory authorities
  • while the GE lobby has waged a heavily resourced battle for acceptance of GMOs, public reaction has in many instances been hostile. The media has been extremely critical of GMOs in countries such as Kenya, Zambia and South Africa.

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