ByDELEOGBODO
The Federal Government (FG) through the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA) has stated that Biotechnology has the potential to generate benefits for humankind even as it is a lever to sustainable development.
The Director General/Chief Executive Officer of NABDA, Prof. Abdullahi Mustapha, made this known while speaking at a One-Day Biotechnology and Bio-safety Sensitization Workshop for the South-west region of Nigeria at the Federal University of Oye-Ekiti, in Ekiti State.
He said: “At NABDA, we are already deploying safe biotechnology tools that is targeted at revolutionizing food production in Nigeria and the African continent.
“Transgenic crops in the pipeline of commercialization include TELA maize, HT soybean, among several others.
“Nigeria’s transgenic cowpea/beans, which is the world’s first Genetically Modified Pod Borer Resistant (PBR) cowpea/beans, is revolutionizing the nation’s food production.
“There have been no track records of any ill-health effect on human and animal, the crops are rather penetrating the deepest region of the Nigerian market, improving the livelihoods and health of the Nigerian local farmers through insecticide spray reduction.”
In commendation of biotechnology as gateway to national development, he said: “In medicine, it has contributed to the development of vaccines, drugs, and diagnostic aids.
“In agriculture, it promises to enhance food security with crops with higher yields, improved nutritional value, and resistance to pests and environmental hazards, while reducing dependence on fertilizers and herbicides.
The DG, acknowledged that humans have used biotechnology for millennia, explaining that farmers have experimented with selective breeding and cross-fertilization to improve the yields and resilience of their crops and animal breeds.
The process of fermentation, he added has led to gastronomic miracles through the production of cheese and alcoholic beverages.
50 years ago, however, modern biotechnology (also known as genetic engineering) revolutionized our ability to alter living organisms.
Building on the work of Rosalind Franklin, Watson and Crick who published the structure and function of DNA in 1953, scientists have manipulated the genetic structure of living cells by extracting and transferring strands of DNA from one species to another.
This enabled the combination of genetic material that would never occur naturally, with the aim of developing or improving specific characteristics of an organism for the betterment of society economically and otherwise. Since then, dozens of genetically modified (GM) food crops and animals have been developed.
However, the history of modern biotechnology shows innovation efforts are targeted to a limited number of crops suited for the agricultural model and markets of developed, rather than developing, countries.
This raised concerns that modern biotechnology is more about private profit than public good.
Since the early days, the promises of modern biotechnology were accompanied by fears about its human, societal, and environmental consequences. The 1975 Asilomar Conference on Recombinant DNA gathered practitioners who agreed on the first biotechnology safety guidelines, in an early application of the precautionary principle, debates have continued to this day.
Mustapha, said: “I feel highly honored and delighted to have you all at this strategic sensitization workshop on Biotechnology and Biosafety for the South-west Region of Nigeria organized by the Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB) in Africa, Nigeria Chapter under the auspices of NABDA in collaboration with the Program for Biosafety Systems (PBS), the African Agricultural Technology Foundation, (AATF), the Federal University, Ado Ekiti and the Ekiti State Government.
“I commend the efforts of our international partners (PBS and AATF), who have over the years continued to be consistent in their approach to give technical support in the adoption of agricultural biotechnology in Nigeria and Africa at large.
“Let me also extend our appreciation to the team on ground at the Federal University of Oye-Ekiti, led by Prof. Sylvia Uzochukwu, for their tremendous efforts in ensuring elaborate preparation and smooth take-off of this Sensitization workshop. We remain grateful and are not taking this for granted.”
On framework, he admitted that although implementation challenges remain, the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety has contributed to the development of many national biotechnology regulatory frameworks, particularly in developing countries.
According to him, with links to international environmental, human rights, and trade law, Biotechnology is a centerpiece of sustainable development law.
“As research continues, with more Genetically Modified Crops (GMO) approved and applications increasingly concerning organisms other than plants, such as insects and fish, the Protocol provides a forum to monitor developments and address risk assessment and risk management challenges.
“At the same time, the old debate over promises and risks of modern biotechnology re-invents itself around new scientific achievements.
“For example, Gene drives enhance the ability of a genetic characteristic to pass from a parent to its offspring, with the potential to modify the genetic profile of entire target populations.
“How the international community can address such emerging technologies by examining environmental and socio-economic risks while reaping potential benefits remains a crucial challenge for policymakers and researchers alike.”
The NABDA boss, said revisiting the history of the regulation and the public discussion on genetic engineering can however provide valuable lessons, adding that it is for this afore mentioned reasons he is describing the biotechnology and biosafety sensitization workshop holding in Ekiti State as epoch and timely.
He said the agency will not relent in its efforts to continually train farmers and other stakeholders on the adoption of this cutting-edge technology.
“While I applaud our partners and other key players contributing to the success of the adoption and deployment of biotechnology in Nigeria, I implore all participants at this workshop to embrace this technology and sensitize others at the grassroots so that together, we will grow wealth and fight hunger and poverty in the nation.
“Ladies and gentlemen, the biotechnology space is already leapfrogging Africa out of nutrition insecurity.” Mustapha, said.