GMOs in East Africa - Food Security Boon or Seed Stealing Ploy? GlobalPress: EastAfrica
Outside her brick house in central Uganda's Kavule village, Nalwoga Mary, 89, gently spreads out seeds of maize and beans on a tarpaulin. The seeds will be out in the sun all day, every day for almost a week until the moisture completely dries out. They will then be stored either in a plastic container or plastic carryout bags for use in the next growing season. Every harvest, Nalwoga saves around 3 kilograms of maize and bean seeds.
The coffee buyer was referring to the Kenyan government's decision in October last year to allow cultivation and importation of GMO foods 10 years after banning their use. The move prompted civil society groups in both Kenya and Uganda to sue the Kenyan government. As a result, the Kenyan high court has halted the government's decision for now.
Even though Uganda President Yoweri Museveni declined, in 2012 and 2017, to sign into law the National Biotechnology and Biosafety Bill, it is still an active issue in the country. In October 2022, the Ugandan Parliament planned to introduce a bill prohibiting GMOs, but the bill has still not been introduced. Despite repeated requests for comment, Global Press Journal did not receive a response from the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries.
Eddie Mukiibi, the executive director of Slow Food Uganda, a grassroots organization that works to prevent the disappearance of local food cultures and traditions, says the Kenyan government's decision should have everyone in Uganda and across the continent worried.
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