Miten bioteknologia on pidetty poissa Afrikasta?

[Heikki Jokipii]

Jatko-osa edelliseen:

Viewpoint: Part II â€" Anti-GMO arguments rest entirely on botched studies

Siitä nosto, tämä huomio (lihav. HJ):

Not a single person in the world has been ill or died as a result of consuming GMO derived food. Annually hundreds of millions of animals are fed with GMO derived feed and there has not been a single documented case of adverse effects as a result of consuming GM feed. And the Europeans who are against GM cultivation are among the top ranked importers of GM food and feed in world.

[Heikki Jokipii]

Ja osat III ja IV.

Viewpoint â€" Part III: Claimed side-effects of GM crops from GMO corn rebuked by scientists

Viewpoint â€" Part IV: Anti-GM protests spread fear and ultimately protect pet industries while denying Africa opportunities to advance

Alkuperäiset ilmestyivät täällä:

https://geneticliteracyproject.org/source/guardian-nigeria/

17.3.24. Viides osa:

Viewpoint â€" Part V: ‘Ignominious’, fabricated attacks on GM crops jeopardize Africa’s food security and seed sovereignty

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Kuten toisaalta jo tiedämme, Gates  on (vastoin hänestä ja hänen säätiöstään levitettyjä huhuja) pikemminkin ollut vähän nihkeä ja/tai innoton geenitekniikan suhteen. Mutta nyt hän on tukenut tätä projektia:

Pest resistant beans: Gates Foundation in Nigeria helps develop insect-resistant, higher yield cowpeas

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Vaikka rohkaiseviakin uutisia välillä tulee, tämä on tilanne:

Only 11 of 54 African countries grow genetically engineered crops. This study explains why and offers guidance on how to increase acceptance

Adoption of GM crops has been extremely slow in African countries; only eleven of the fifty-four have current approved their cultivation.

…

An intricate narrative surrounding the acceptance of GM crops in Africa has been shaped by worries about the ecosystem, unforeseen outcomes, and moral implications. A sophisticated grasp of socioeconomic dynamics, open communication, and flexible regulatory frameworks are necessary to navigate this evolution. The adoption of GM crops in Africa has followed a trajectory that strikes a balance between the benefits and drawbacks, mirroring the larger global conversation about using biotechnology to promote fair and sustainable farming methods.

No, vielä tällä hetkellä tilanne EU:ssa liene sen parempi:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genetically_modified_food_in_the_European_Union

Siinä on ero, että EU saattaa pärjätä ilmankin. Afrikka luultavasti ei.

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Näin kävi:

Ghana approves fourteen GMO varieties â€" maize and 6 soybean â€" for planting and consumption, dismissing activists attempt to block innovation

This landmark ruling signifies a significant advancement for stakeholders in biotechnology and agricultural innovation. It underscores the importance of science-based biosafety systems in expanding producer choice, fostering consumer confidence, facilitating trade and promoting agricultural research and development.

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Eräällä Afrikan valtiolla ei ole ollut ongelmia:

South Africa has grown genetically modified corn for 27 years. Here’s what Kenya and the rest of Africa can learn from their experience

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GLP palaa muistelemaan tätä vanhaa tapausta:

20 years ago, Zambia ‘shocked the world’ by rejecting free corn to feed its starving population, claiming safety concerns because it was genetically modified. That freeze is thawing.

Mutta nyt asia näyttää siis toiselta. Sambian lisäksi tuolloin "aktivistit" hääräilivät myös Zimbabwessa.

Noihin aikoihin myös yhdistyksemme perustettiin (2003). Ja tällä palstalla oli monia ansiokkaita puheenvuoroja asiasta. Kriisihän jatkui pitkään. Valitettavasti puheenvuorot päätyivät palvelinkatastrofimme (2007) myötä "bittien taivaaseen".

Nyt esitetään tämä jo vaatimuksena:

Viewpoint: Zambia’s drought crisis suggests critical need to reassess misplaced two-decade-old decision to ban genetically modified maize

With Zambia’s recent declaration of a drought as a national disaster, the country faces an impending hunger crisis. Revisiting the ban on GMO maize presents an opportunity to harness the benefits of this technology in mitigating food insecurity.

GMO maize varieties engineered for drought resistance, for example, could significantly enhance Zambia’s resilience to climate change-induced droughts. These varieties have been developed and tested in various regions worldwide, demonstrating their effectiveness in maintaining yield stability under water-stressed conditions [4].

Moreover, GMO maize engineered for pest resistance could help reduce crop losses caused by insects, a common challenge faced by Zambian farmers. By adopting GMO technology, Zambia could increase agricultural productivity, improve food security, and alleviate poverty among its rural population.

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Hank Campbellin synkkä ja syyllistävä näkemys:

Viewpoint: Science colonialism â€" Europe and the United Nations are blocking crop biotechnology poised to address global hunger

Wealthy countries with natural ‘breadbaskets’ â€" places where it is easy to grow food â€" have so much abundance they can put special labels like ‘organic’ on tens of thousands of products and charge more and people will spend $100 billion on them.

Other countries need science, yet it is often the case that regions like Europe dictate what science poorer nations can use. Disagree, and you cannot sell in Europe. Then they mobilize relief efforts for the countries they keep poor.

When poor people are geopolitical pawns for rich ones, can hunger ever be eliminated?

Not at all. If Europe would end its Science Colonialism toward African and Asian developing nations, for example, they could easily feed themselves. Instead, Europe subsidizes its own food so it can compete in those countries while telling local farmers they have to use products European environmentalists and their allies like â€" or else.

YK:n roolia tuossa täytyisi ehkä vielä työstää. Mutta voisi ehkä sanoa, että sen syyllisyys on asiaintilan passiivisessa hyväksymisessä.

***

Zion Lights "säestää" Campbellia:

Viewpoint: Organic mirage: The poor are paying the price for the backlash against agrochemicals and crop biotechnology

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Afrikkalaisten tiedeihmisten vetoomus:

AFRICA
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‘Depoliticise biotechnology research,’ urge African experts
Gilbert Nakweya  06 September 2024

Africa needs to depoliticise biotechnology research to maximise the benefits of science, technology and innovation (STI) to drive economic transformation and sustainable development, say agricultural experts.

The experts from Kenya, Tanzania, Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Ghana, Malawi, Rwanda, Mozambique and Ethiopia, who met in Kigali, Rwanda, during a Strategic Dialogue on Agricultural Technologies in Africa meeting, say that low investment in STI is hindering the continent’s ability to fully utilise STI tools such as biotechnology for development.

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Myyräntyö eli disinfrmaation levittäminen on jatkunut. Ja vaatinut tämän kirjoituksen:

African scientists challenge activist claims that crop biotechnology revolution spreading across Africa threatens continent’s plant biodiversity

Tuossa ei puhuta pohjoisten järjestöjen vaikutuksesta. Onko niin, että ns. aktivistejakin on Afrikalla jo omasta takaa?

Mutta tämä on ihan kansainvlistä kamaa:

Dr. Gidado, who has long worked to dispel agricultural biotechnology myths in Nigeria, also states that anti-GE groups in Africa are wrong in their assertions that international agribusiness conglomerates are plotting to control the continent’s production systems and eradicate its traditional crops and seeds.

[Heikki Jokipii]

Tämä ajattelutapa elää yhä, Afrikassakin:

Viewpoint: Environmentalists claim farmers can forego genetically modified crops and chemicals and still grow bumper crops. If only farming was that easy

Ja on varmaan taustalla näissäkin päätöksissä:

Food-crippled Malawi rejects GMO crops, claiming they cause health problems

[However,] some critics within the Agriculture sector have argued that support for small-scale farmers is inadequate, with programs imposing GMO seeds and chemical fertilizers claiming that the state overlooks agroecology’s importance for small-scale farmers, limiting their choices for sustainable livelihoods.

Vaan tällaistakin virtausta siellä on:

Rwandan farmers and scientists turn to genetic modification to rescue disease-threatened potatoes, maize and cassava

Afrikka on iso maanosa. Varmaan täälläkin on syyllistytty käsittelemään sitä "yhtenä klönttinä".