Ghana to undertake field trials on GM crops
Posted by on February 27, 2009 at 3:44 pm in Other Top StoriesGhana will soon begin field trials with Genetically Modified crops, which, when successful, will help enhance agricultural modernization and productivity.
This follows the coming into force of a legislative instrument in May 2008 allowing research into GM crops pending the passage of the Biosafety Bill.
A secretariat is to be set up to ensure the smooth administrative implementation of the field trials.
Professor Walter Alhassan, a Consultant for African Biotechnology and Biosafety Policy Platform, said this at this year’s press briefing in Accra on Thursday to highlight the current global status of commercialization of biotech crops and Genetically Modified crops.
The briefing, which is done annually, is organised by International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications (ISAAA), a US registered not for profit NGO.
Prof. Alhassan explained that the LI used the existing CSIR Act 521 of 1996 as a template, since it had provisions for the conduct of research in general, and it was simply to extend this to the conduct of research on Genetically Modified Organisms.
He said, there was the need to speed up the passage of the Biosafety Bill to catch up with the global world and improve agriculture and food security.
Giving the status of Biotechnology and Biosafety in Africa, Prof. Alhassan said Mali, Togo, Malawi, Kenya, Zimbabwe and Cameroon had their legislations in place but were yet to commercialise their production. Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania and Mozambique have legal frameworks but were yet to commence field trials with GM crops.
He noted that with the current low levels of agricultural productivity, there was the likelihood that Africa would not meet the Millennium Development Goal of halving the number of poor and hungry by 2015.
The report on Global Status of Biotech/GM crops identified challenges in the agriculture sector as low technological deployment, climate change problems, market constraints, low levels of investment in agriculture, conflicts and farming systems.
“Biotechnology is one of the tools that can make a meaningful contribution to the challenges facing the continent. Therefore it would be wise for us to embrace this idea to meet the challenges.â€
For the first time, the accumulated area of biotech crops for the period 1996-2008 exceeded two million hectares.
Out of the 25 countries planting biotech crops, 15 are developing countries and 10 are industrialised countries. Another 30 countries approve import of biotech products for food and feed use.
Egypt, Burkina Faso, Bolivia, Brazil and Australia were the first five countries to commercialise their biotech crops in their countries with the number of biotech crop farmers increasing from 1.3 million to 13.3 million in the 25 biotech crop countries between 1996 and 2008.
The report said the global value of the biotech crop market in 2008 was 7.5 billion US dollars with an accumulated historical milestone value of 50 billion US dollars for the period of 1996-2008.
The report cited case studies in South Africa, China, India and the Philippines where biotech crops have improved the income and quality of life and resourced poor farmers and their families.
GNA
4 Responses to “Ghana to undertake field trials on GM crops”
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Are we crazy or something?? Why are we going down this way?? We don’t need Genetically Modified foods, for crying out loud! We have natural foods and that is the way it should be. What is wrong with Ghanaians and Black people?? we just go along with something for the sake of it. These foods are renowned for causing certain diseases which are alien to our part of the world. All we need to do is to fix our agricultural setup i.e. Irrigational facilities and then food will be there in abundance. Why are going down some stupid route??
Professor Alhassan can go and try his experiment somewhere else, but we certainly do not need it in Ghana and if it carries on, I will personally engage the services of Greenpeace to make sure this project never sees the light of day. And this is a promise!
on February 27th, 2009 at 10:48 pmThe confused Professor should burry his face in shame. Does Ghanaians need this? Who is that Professor at all. Africa has always been a laboratory for useless experiments and if we continue to entertain confused professors like Alhassan whose education has nothing better to offer Ghanaians but long term suffering from cancerous deseases then you know the path that the country is threading to. We should all categorically reject the so-called trials let alone implement it. For mother Ghana’s sake. I think the Professor needs some psychatrist
on March 10th, 2009 at 4:36 pmThis GMO stuff must be completely rejected as it will be the beginning of the destruction of our healthy God given traditional seeds. How will the small-scale farmer that puts over 80% of food on our tables afford hi-tech commercialized seeds if he can no longer produce his own seeds from mother nature? I respect scientists and their works a lot but it should all be home grown solutions to make our farmers find life and livelihood in their vocation. Think about “generational food security” for our country and others around us. Too much copying can be disastrous to our future.
on March 13th, 2009 at 4:22 pmI think we have to give a strong appreciation to the publisher for bringing such an issue to our awareness. Please dear readers, we don´t have to blame the white colored proffessor, rather, the source of the whole episode. We have a lot of brain washed Africans who has forgotten that they were feed with African natural food before they acquire their degree, in correction, sorry their disgrace.
on January 4th, 2010 at 9:27 pmWe have a lot of African intelletuals after several years of education bowing down back to tradition. Now proffessors are chasing and struggling for vacant and occupied African traditional stools.How long shall they destroy our Great Ones and come out to console us just because of a mere ignorance. They came in with different strategies and now our best intellectuals are becoming insane subscribing to an extend point of view that Nature is weaker than artificials. Perhaps the Proffessor from the Northern region of Ghana has lost the taste of “TUOSAAFI” “KONKONTE” “WAAKYE” let alone than to compare bio-foods to African bitter leaves, peeper soup, Nkontomire, garden eggs as well as pounded yam or fufu. Please African intellectuals don´t sell out our continent and bring in filthy nonsense. African intellectuals driving along on the political landscape has failed us 50 years after gaining our independence and if we the Pan Africanist among us are trying to reconstruct our past destructions, then come such a serious blow, just to attack mother NATURE: What a pity.