Stakeholders endorse bio-safety bill
Stakeholders have endorsed a bio-safety bill, urging its speedy passage as the country has been missing out on huge economic and health opportunities such as a global market worth trillions of dollars.
This was at a public hearing held Thursday October 16 to establish the National Bio-safety Management Agency at the senate, National Assembly Abuja which drew large number of stakeholders from research, farmers, the academia and so on. Maurice Iwu, who currently heads the Bio Resources Institute of Nigeria said at the open forum that the market for genetic materials alone, which is just one of the many aspects of biotechnology is worth over $500 globally. Iwu also said that the setting up of a facility to counter biological problems such as the notorious Ebola Virus Diseases (EVD) within a country would only be possible with a bio-safety bill in place.
“The bill is not just for agric purposes but also to preserve our lives,” stated Iwu.
Lucy J. Ogbadu, director-general, National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA) drew attention to the fact the international treaty on biotechnology to which Nigeria is a signatory is meant to give adequate protection and sustenance to the practice of biotechnology and that consequently all member nations are supposed to domesticate the protocol.
Ogbadu noted that South Africa, Egypt, Burkina Faso, Togo and Ghana have passed the bio-safety law and are all seeing the positive effects on their economies. She also said that biotechnology is one of the most reliable technologies. “It is also among the few technologies driving the economies of nations, propelling the economies of developed nations globally
Ogbadu further said that Genetically Modified (GM) foods have passed the risk assessment of the World Health Organisation (WHO), Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), the African Union (AU) and New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD). “A body known as African Bio-safety Network of Expertise (ABNE) has been established under the AU-NEPAD. The Bio-safety law was passed in South Africa in 1989, Egypt passed their bio-safety law in 1995, Kenya in 2009 and is now a hub of commercialisation and investments on GM crops/GMOs in Sub Saharan Africa. Absence of bio-safety law has made it difficult for NABDA to perform its statutory functions.”
Earlier, during the forum, Abdul Bulama, minister of science and technology stated that the delay has affected manufacturing in Nigeria and robbed the country of countless opportunities. He also noted that it has led to the refusal of world seed companies to invest in Nigeria. “Current information is either distorted or sensational.” He urged the media to allay the fears of people on biotechnology since the threats are perceived not real.
Suleiman Abdullahi, president, National Cotton Association of Nigeria said India exports up to $6 billion of cotton annually through the use of biotechnology in production. He further said, “Burkina Faso is now the leading cotton producer in West Africa as a result of agric biotechnology. 10 flights leave Kenya with export produce daily. The revenue that would have accrued from these crops would have been more than even three times what the federal government needs to combat insurgency.”
OLUYINKA ALAWODE