African countries poised to grow GMO crops

When food becomes scarce the majority of households turn to food rationing, even for children and pregnant women. Such a situation portends a future of social unrest, financial hardships, malnutrition, vulnerability and dependence on food donations from foreign nations and food agencies.

Writing in a Genetic Literacy Project publication early this month, Steven Cerier said African countries have got to sharply increase food production.

“GMO technology holds great benefits and promise for Africa, which needs to boost food output and to feed a growing population,” he said.

The major factors behind declining food out-put include drought, incurable crop diseases, and poor quality seed among many others.

In Uganda we have chemically incurable diseases destroying bananas, cassava, sweet potato, and maize, among others. We are also experiencing longer droughts.

Cerier has observed that Africa, led by Nigeria, is now poised to adopt GMO technology for crop production as a means of boosting its agricultural sector.

He blamed their delay to accept GM technology on what he describes as inaccurate claims by international and domestic opposition.

NGOs such as Greenpeace, Friends of the Earth, Genewatch, Action Aid, and GM Freeze and their allies across Africa have for decades urged Africa not to commercialise GMO crops.

He says that there is no credible scientific evidence suggesting GMOs are hazardous to human health or the environment, a conclusion recently reached by US National Academy of Sciences and is also the conclusion of the Academy of Sciences of Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zimbabwe, and the International Society of African Scientists (ISAS).

Ugandan GMO research under NARO (National Agricultural Research Organisation) has produced pest resistant and drought tolerant crop breeds.

Until Parliament passes the National Biotechnology and Biosafety Bill the breeds cannot be cultivated by farmers.