By Ekene Ezugwu

At a recent roundtable Conference on the introduction of Genetically
Modified Crops in Nigeria, the Minister of Science and Technology Chief
Grace Ekpiwhre almost shouted blue murder about the looming food crises in
Sub-Saharan Africa.
According to Mrs. Ekpiwhre, a situation where food production has actually
declined over the past decades calls for concern and collective efforts to
arrest the trend. Between 1980 and 1985, yields of staple crops fell by an
average of 8% compared to an increase of 27% in Asia and 12% in Latin
America.

In the specific case of Nigeria, the current agricultural growth is put at a
meager 4.5% which is far below the ever increasing food demands of our
rising population. As a way of short-circulating the problem, Mrs. Ekpiwhre
made a strong case for the utilization of transgenic crop technology for
increased agricultural productivity, better nutrition and improved crop
resistance to pests and drought.

In other words, in the words of the Minister, the option of Genetically
Modified Crops, as is being developed by the National Biotechnology
Development Agency, an agency of the Ministry should be explored to the
maximum.

Genetically engineered Crops are Crops in which the genetic code is
scientifically altered to produce foods with a desired trait. The term
"genetically modified" refers to the alteration of genetic material. In
essence, It is a process whereby the genes of one organism have been "cut
out" and then pasted into another organism.

There has been a lot of controversy on the desirability of GM Foods/organism
with foreign advocacy groups like Greenpeace raising alarm on the health
risk of the foods. They argue that the food Industry should be more open and
transparent in the creation and testing of GM Foods. The case is also made
against GM food for the lack of scientific evidence on the effects of
modified Food on human health. Critics also point to the inadequacy of
safety test technology to assess potential harm as well as the fact that
they allegedly carry unpredictable toxins, thereby increasing the risk of
allergenic reactions.

On the contrary, GM advocates aver that GM plants are often created to
resist disease and eliminate the need for pesticides. This super Crops is
also said to produce a harder texture, higher nutritional value or faster
growth. All said, given the large share of agriculture in our Gross Domestic
Product, the importance of Biotechnology, as a national manipulation of
biological objects cannot be over-emphasized.

If it is properly harnessed, biotechnology has the potential of increasing
our food Production, enhancing the quality of food, guaranteeing cleaner
environment and better and more target specific medicines, etc.

The National Biotechnology Development (NABDA) of the Federal Ministry of
Science and Technology is currently spearheading the gains of
"Biotechnology" to all sectors of the Nigerian economy.

Using various genetic manipulation techniques, many Crops such as Cotton,
Cowpea, Corn, Rubber, Palm tree, Cassava, Cocoa and Rice are being improved
upon to produce higher yields and make them resistant to pests, diseases and
environmental stresses.

The agency has successfully developed bio-resource centers in some parts of
the country, the most notable being the one at Odi, Bayelsa State.

The centers teach entrepreneurs to establish farms for small to medium scale
commercial production of such items as fish, snail, cane rat (grass cutter)
and mushroom. It is cheering to note that the products of the Farms can be
developed to the volume required for export. Many of the items are viable
export commodities with high demand in the regional and international
markets.

By using tissue culture technique in collaboration with Raw Materials
Research and Development Council and National Root Crops Research Institute,
the National Biotechnology Development Agency is mass propagating elite
varieties of cassava.

At present, tissue culture planting materials developed by the Agency for
hundreds of economic and food crops including yam sweet potatoes, plantain,
pineapple, passion fruit etc. are being sold to interested farmers.

In order to reap maximally from Biotechnology, a technology aptly described
as the "technology of hope" for its vast potentials in the food, health and
environmental sustainability, the federal government must facilitate
demand-driven research projects that are relevant to given ecological zones
as well as specific industries.

Even though the Federal Ministry of Science and Technology has trained over
400 Farmers in various Bioenterprises, there is need to embark on intensive
training of more farmers all over the country for sustainable food security
via Biotechnology.

In addition, with the present foray into Biotechnology by the Science and
Tech Ministry, there is need to embark on intensive public awareness
programme on the value of this latest technological fad. This is necessary
so as to disabuse the minds of the farmers and other stakeholders of wrong
information about GM Crops. This type of information strategy must do away
with Top-down approach system and adopt a mobilization strategy that would
enable the farmers own the new pet technological project and view it as
theirs and made for their benefits.
www.checkbiotech.org