Is Rwanda ready for genetically modified foods?

The majority of policymakers and consumers in Africa are deeply divided on adopting genetically modified foods, a UN report has said.Arguments for and against are drawn between potential harms on the soil and health wise and benefits of genetically modified foods (GMOs).With GMOs being termed as a route to food security which has for long eluded most African countries, some agriculture experts have been urging countries to consider it as a viable option for sustainable food security.The benefits of GMOs range from higher yielding crops and drought resistance to accuracy in terms of desired yield, while a range of health risks attributed to them stop the scale from tipping.According to research by the Melinda and Bill Gates Foundation, which supports the use of GM technologies, “the average yield of cereal per acre is seven times greater where GM crops were in use.”The report says compared to conventional plant breeding methods, GMO technology is less time-consuming and more accurate in acquiring the desired objectives.Currently, under review, is a draft Biosafety Bill 2005, which would address the issue of adopting GMOs in the country. If passed, the law will govern and regulate the use of GMOs, including its import and export.Dr Daphrose Gahakwa, the deputy director-general for research at the Rwanda Agricultural Board (Rab), said currently there are no GMOs in the country.“There is a lot of policy and regulation required in Genetically Modified foods, which we currently don’t have. Even for imports and food aid, it is stipulated that we don’t allow in GMOs, which should be clearly labelled.”Dr Gahakwa said consumers have no reason to worry about consuming GMOs for now as they are expensive in adopting and are heavily regulated.“GMOs can’t be easily imposed to unsuspecting consumers as they are expensive and are heavily regulated. They are also adopted on a case-by-case basis. There is never a blanket approach when it comes to GMOs. Each item is analysed, adopted and approved individually,” she said.Former Rab chief Mark Cyubahiro Bagabe, now the director-general of Rwanda Bureau of Standards, urges stakeholders to choose between the benefits and negative effects of adopting GMOs.“Stakeholders and policymakers involved in reviewing the draft Biosafety Bill need to weigh between the potential benefits and harms that could arise from use of GMOs. It is through analysis of impacts that they will determine if it will be beneficial in any way in dealing with attempts to achieve food security.”Farmers’ hesitationAmong the reasons farmers would be hesitant to take up GMOs is the lack of knowledge about them and the missperceptions which have left them in fear.Alphonsine Umutoni, a farmer who uses green houses for vegetable production, said there has been a lot of negative talk and suspicion about GMOs that would make many farmers hesitant to take them up even if the law allowed it.“Many farmers do not fall solely under commercial farming, they are both subsistent and commercial and they might be hesitant to consume the GMOs. There is also the issue of the market perception, where farmers have to weigh the needs of the consumers,” she said.Umutoni said for now it would be more beneficial to build around the already existing farming practices that would improve food security like better fertilisers, seed quality and embracing green houses. “Using better farming practices will not only increase our food production capacity, it will also be cost effective as GMOs require heavy investments.”The World Health Organisation standards says GMO products that are currently on the international market have all passed risk assessments conducted by national authorities. The assessments follow the same basic principles, including an assessment of environmental and human health risk. These assessments are thorough; they have not indicated any risk to human health.

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Is Rwanda ready for genetically modified foods?