State told to lift ban on GMOs
Progress in plant sciences is opening up the promise of a new agricultural revolution, and there is no place on Earth better placed to take advantage of this than Africa. FILE PHOTO |
What you need to know:
- At the same time the dons from Kenyatta and Egerton universities, scientists from the Kenya Agriculture Research Institute (Kari) and representatives of the National Biosafety Authority (NBA) said it was wrong for the government to continue enforcing the ban while it was funding GMO research.
The government should stop applying double standards and lift the ban on the use of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in a bid to address the deteriorating food security in the country, university dons and researchers have said.
At the same time the dons from Kenyatta and Egerton universities, scientists from the Kenya Agriculture Research Institute (Kari) and representatives of the National Biosafety Authority (NBA) said it was wrong for the government to continue enforcing the ban while it was funding GMO research.
“This amounts to hypocrisy and that is why we are calling for the lifting of the ban,” said Dr Richard Okoth Oduor, a senior lecturer at Kenyatta University.
Egerton University Vice Chancellor Prof James Tuitoek said the government should lift the ban without further delay as the country already had an effective regulatory body - the National Biosafety Authority.
They were speaking at Egerton University’s Njoro Campus at the weekend during a two days workshop on biotechnology and GMO.
The ban on GMO was imposed on November 8, 2012 after a group of farmers and consumers complained that some GMO food crops were being imported into the country without being labelled as such.
