EDITORIAL
The Minister of Science and Technology, Professor Bassey Ita Ewa, indicated recently that the Federal Government has given its stamp of approval for the importation and consumption of genetically modified (GM) foods in the country. Although the highly controversial crops and their derivatives have found their way into the country for some time now, Mr Ewa's statement was the first direct confirmation yet of official sanction for their presence.
It may come as something of a surprise to some, even shock to many, that such a profound policy step would be taken without as much as consultation with the public. It would be appropriate therefore to consider Mr Ewa's pronouncement as an attempt to provoke a national debate on the issue, and not a fiat that Nigerians must accept.
Genetic engineering is an important global issue on which each nation must decide for itself which way to go.
The Minister of Agriculture, Dr Akinwumi Adesina, said at a media briefing the other day that Nigeria could not afford to be alone among African countries in accepting and consuming GM products. He noted that South Africa, Egypt, Burkina Faso and Sudan were already doing the same.
It may be true that GM crops have some advantages over traditional ones. Their high yield, quick maturing, disease-resistance and generally longer shelf lifespan qualities make them a good option. Indeed, many nations see GM crops as the key to their national food security. Governments of especially countries with large populations to feed; or those with poor soils and which are afflicted by adverse weather conditions see in GM organisms a solution to the challenges facing them.
Still, even in advanced nations that have pioneered the technology and fully embraced the crops, controversies over them linger. Scientists have raised concerns about their effect on human health and on the environment. It is alleged that the crops damage the soil and that large quantities of fertilizers and hazardous chemicals are required to successfully cultivate them. And for particularly the developing world, GM crops portend another challenge of having to depend on giant companies in the West for seed imports to replant as some of the crops do not have seeds or those with seeds cannot produce high-yield varieties when they are planted. Unless these allegations about the disadvantages of the crops are satisfactorily addressed, it would be premature to expose Nigerian farmers to GM seeds when the technology is still in its infancy in the country, if at all.
The government should launch an urgent national debate on the issue before an informed decision based on Nigeria's best national interest can be adopted. Nigerian geneticists and allied professionals should be commissioned and well funded but be given the free hand to carry out research in these new crops and come out with findings uninfluenced by the powerful multinationals whose lobbies try to sway governments all over the world to encourage the adoption of GM crops.
It would be foolhardy to embrace the new crops just because other countries in Africa have embraced them. For Nigeria, there is no need to be in any particular hurry to accept the new crops without due diligence because Nigeria's national food security challenge does nots lay in the poor quality crops for cultivation, nor does the country suffer from poor soil or adverse weather conditions. The main challenge now is that a large percentage of the national arable land is not being put under cultivation. Since the advent of the oil boom nearly four decades ago, successive governments have paid scant attention to agriculture as a national security issue. This is the time to do it, by going back to agriculture, which offers better food and economic security than oil.
Efforts should also be made to find a solution to the huge post-harvest losses that farmers suffer. If these and many other steps are taken, the country may in the end find it does not have any need for inorganic substances like GM crops to feed the people.
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