Genetically Modified foods #nigeria

Should Nigerians grow or consume genetically
modified foods? Our reporter explores the issues.
At about the middle of this year, the Minister of
Agriculture, Mr Akinwumi Adesina presented his
ministry's score card to Nigerians, and used the
ceremony to inform Nigerians that the country
would start the importation and use of genetically
modified food products from 2014.
The announcement was greeted with an uproar
from activists and those opposed to the
deployment of the technology in Nigeria.
According to them, the country was already
blessed with arable land, and there was no need
to infect God's gift to us with bacteria and viruses
which the country lacked the capacity to handle.
The fear to some was well founded, while others
have a different opinion, saying that all
technologies, like change, are met with stiff
opposition at their introduction, no matter its
benefit to humanity.
They cited the aeroplane, computers and cars, as
some of the technological developments which
were initially opposed, but today people cannot
do without them.
Background:
The introduction of issues of GM in Nigeria has
been on for a while, but remarkably in 2007
stakeholders met and articulated a piece of
legislation under the auspices of the biosafety bill,
and forwarded same to the national assembly. In
2009, the House of Representatives passed the bill
after so much back and forth. The same bill was
also passed by the Senate in 2011, shortly before
the expiration of the 6th national assembly.
Since 2011, the bill has been on Mr President's
desk waiting for his assent, but sources at the
Presidency said the bill was returned to the
national assembly last week, in preparation for
the needed legal guideline for the commencement
of importation and use of genetically modified
organisms, as promised by the Agriculture
Minister.
As at of today, two researches on genetically
modified cowpea and cassava are on-going in
Nigeria, while preparations are on for the
introduction of research on GM rice.
Results from the trials of the cowpea research
which is held at the Agricultural Research
Institute, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria has
advanced, and it is being duplicated in Ghana,
under a joint project supported by the African
Agricultural Technology Foundation.