Diran Makinde presented on biosafety policies and food security issues in Africa. He discussed how Africa spends $30-50 billion annually importing food that could be used for infrastructure and development. Key threats to African food security include low soil fertility, poor crop management, pests and diseases. Transforming African agriculture will require improved seeds, fertilizers, markets, policy reforms and building regulatory capacity for crops improved through biotechnology. Challenges include balancing risks and benefits, building human and institutional capacity, and operationalizing complex regulatory frameworks. Sustainable adoption of biotech crops in Africa requires appropriate regulation, research, extension services, and addressing unfair trade issues.

1. Biosafety Policies and Food
Security Issues in Africa: How
Enhancing?
Diran Makinde
NEPAD Agency African Biosafety Network of Expertise,
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
Presentation at the FARA Science Week Side Event on Sustainable
Intensification: A New Paradigm for African Agriculture
Accra. Tuesday, 16th
July 2:30 – 3:45pm

2. Issues
• Africa, spends btwn $30 billion to $50 billion/year to
import food. (Funds needed for infrastructure, social & economic
amenities) By 2030 could be up to $150 billion!!!
• Prior to 2008 financial crisis, Africa grew faster than
most world regions with more than 40 % of its
countries with an av annual GDP growth rate of
2.3%-3.8%.
• Agric productn increased to 12.3% of GDP in ’09
(Attributed to farm area expansion)

3. 33
 Low soil fertility and poor nutritionLow soil fertility and poor nutrition
 Poor varietiesPoor varieties
 Poor crop managementPoor crop management
 Inappropriate labour saving technologiesInappropriate labour saving technologies
 Pests, diseases and weedsPests, diseases and weeds
 Post harvest lossesPost harvest losses
 Inadequate processing and utilizationInadequate processing and utilization
 Shortage of seed and other planting materialsShortage of seed and other planting materials
Threats to food security inThreats to food security in
AfricaAfrica

4. And now global warming and climate change…..
Models suggest that climate change are
positive or neutral
at high latitudes but negative at low
latitudes
Increased CO2 (from the current 385
ppm set to rise to 450ppm) raises some
yields
H20 limits others
Spectrum of pests and disease change
Carbon dioxide levels over
the last 60,000 years

5. Transforming African Agriculture
• Widespread use of quality farm inputs & technologies
– Improved seed - conventional & biotechnology
– Fertiliser
– Crop protection chemicals
– Irrigation
– Equipment
• Empowered farmers
– Training – gain the knowledge, info & skills
– Credit
– Basic health, education & nutrition
• Markets that work
– Incentive to invest
– Infrastructure that enables trade
– Information to make good business decisions
• Proactive Policy, Regulatory Reform
– Political will and commitment to create and enabling environment51

6. GM crops approved in SA (AfricaBio, 2012)
Crops Year first
approved
Year first produced
Insect – resistant cotton 1997 1998
Insect – resistant maize 1997 1988/1999
Herbicide – tolerant cotton 2000 2001/2002
Herbicide – tolerant soybean 2001 2001/2002
Herbicide – tolerant maize 2002 2003/2004
Stacked cotton (Bt + HT)
-Insect resistance
-Herbicide resistance
2005 2005/2006
Stacked maize
(Bt + HT)
2007 2007/08
Bollgard II cotton
(2 Bt genes)
2010 2010
1st CFT was in 1989 and approved according to SAGENE guidelines

7. Crops Traits % crops
planted in
SA in 2011
% crops
planted in
the US in
2011
% crops
planted
in SA in
2012
Cotton Insect resistance,
Herbicide tolerance
Stacked traits
100% (1%) 94% 100%
95%
Maize Insect resistance,
Herbicide tolerance
Stacked traits
72% (80%) 88% 86%
Soybean Herbicide tolerance 85% (19%) 93% 90%
7
GMOs planted in South Africa (Source:
AfricaBio, 2012)
Total Area : 2,3M Ha in 2011 to 2,9M Ha in 2012
15 years of growing GM crops and increasing hectares
South Africa is the fastest and early adopter of

8. Projected Economic Benefit Analyses of GM Technology for West
Africa
TYLCV = Tomato yellow leaf curl virus; DBM = Diamondback moth; SFB = Shoot & fruit borer
Country Trait Benefit (US$
Million)
Literature
Mali Bt (IR) Cotton 7 – 67 Cabanillla et al. 2004
Burkina Faso Bt Cotton 4 – 41 “
Benin Bt Cotton 5 – 52 “
Cote d’Ivoire Bt Cotton 4 – 38 “
Senegal Bt Cotton 1 – 7 “
Benin Bt Cowpea 11 – 50 Gbegbelegbe et al. 2007
Ghana GM Tomato
(TYLCV)
US$ 920/ha Horna et al. 2008
GM Cabbage
(DBM)
US$ 1542/ha
GM African
eggplant (SFB)
US$ 1542/ha “

9. Economic benefit from Bt cotton- B. Faso
Source: INERA, 2012
Year
Bt area
cultivated
(ha)
Income cf
conventionnal
Bt/ha (US$)
Total income/year
(US$ million)
2009 129,000 62.0 7,998
2010 256,000 84.0 21,504
2011 251,000 95.0 23,845

10. Regulating Risk Assessment Activities of
GE crops at the international level
-The Convention on Biological Diversity and its Protocol
on Biosafety
-WTO Agreement on Sanitary & Phytosanitary
Measures;
- FAO-WHO Codex Alimentarius Commission a Joint
FAO/WHO Consultation on Strategies for assessing the
safety of foods produced by biotechnology
-OECD UNEP International Technical Guidelines for
Safety in Biotechnology
NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency

11. Regulatory systems
• AU model law widely adopted
– Inspired by the Convention on Biodiversity
– Poor understanding of the rational for certain
provisions
– Use as a tool to protect African against
“greediness” of multinationals and western world
– Vulnerabilities on LMO-FFPs and derived products
that can impact trade and adoption of cultivation
– UNEP-GEF activities endorsed it frequently
Croplife Confidential 11

12. The Precautionary Principle (PP) in action
• The PP has been distorted by activist groups andThe PP has been distorted by activist groups and
certain governmentscertain governments
• The PP is being used to block adoption of GMOs inThe PP is being used to block adoption of GMOs in
the EU, and elsewhere, in a manner inconsistent withthe EU, and elsewhere, in a manner inconsistent with
commonly accepted definitions and principles.commonly accepted definitions and principles.
• The PP was never intended to be an excuse to doThe PP was never intended to be an excuse to do
nothing or to not adopt a technologynothing or to not adopt a technology
NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency

13. PP in action II
• When applied correctly PP is an imp principle
in assessing the risks arising from technology
• Used to identify gaps in knowledge, issues
that need further study & the scope for
potential harm.
• Application has to be contextualized & based
on an analysis of data & evidence available,
potential harm if the proposed measure is
undertaken
NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency

14. Enabling legislative and regulatory frameworks in 1st
six
biotech adopter nations in Africa (Okeno et al. New Biotechnol. 30, 2013)
Country Regulatory Framework
Biosafety act/bill Biosafety
regulations/guidelines
Biotech policy/strategy
South Africa Biosafety Act No. 2 1997 GMO Regulations 1999
Draft GMO Regulations 2008
National Biotechnology
Strategy 2001
Burkina Faso Biosafety Act 2006 GMO Regulations and
guidelines 2004
No stand-alone Biotech
Policy
Egypt Draft Biosafety Bill 2006 Ministerial Decree No. 136 of
1995
Ministerial Decree No 1648 of
1998
No stand-alone Biotech
Policy
Kenya Biosafety Act No. 2 2009 Biosafety Regulations 2011 National Biotechnology
Policy 2006
Uganda Draft National
Biotechnology Safety Bill
2008
CFT Guidelines 2006 National Biotechnology
and Biosafety Policy 2008
Nigeria Biosafety Act 2011 Biosafety Guidelines 2001 National Biosafety Policy
2006

15. The 4 Biosafety Constraints
Policy
• Too focused on risks; not
reflect global experience.
• Non-science elements- socio-
economic considerations
• Strict liability clauses-
disincentive
• RA requirements out of sync
with product dev.
• Regulations are typically
unaffordable & unenforceable.
• National vs regional conflicts
Capacity
• Poor critical mass of experts-
opportunity for loud voices &
influencers
• Opposing views of development
partners
Process
• Inter-ministerial turf-lack of
harmonization.
• Limited operational budget
• Biosafety law not reconciled
with existing laws
Practice
• Expensive infrastructure for CFTs
Trade issues• NEPAD Planning and Coordinating

16. Constraints in developing Regulatory
Framework
• Limited institutional capacity- human,
financial & institutional
• Lack of domestic regulatory policy for testing,
release and commercialisatn.
• The complexity of the decisions required
within a specific time-frame
• The problems of public involvement in
countries with high levels of illiteracy.

17. Africa 2012 On-going biotech/GM crops research activities by October 1st 2012

18. Challenges
• Risk of backsliding
• Recent govt. decisions not supportive: labeling
regulations; GM import ban
• No coherent position among govt. agencies;
or within key govt. entities such as Public
Health;
• Elections: a challenge and an opportunity

19. Challenges to NEPAD Agency
ABNE
• ABNE is milestone-driven but circumstances
are sometimes beyond ABNE’s control
– Changing political climate
– Policies and laws that are not implementable
• Biotechnology is moving forward – demand
for regulatory services is outpacing the
resources.

20. Other Challenges
• Training of producers
• Technology fee
• Seed production
• Establishment of refugia zones
• Co-existence between GM & non-GM
• Building research capacity
• New pests
NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency

21. Quo vadis (Where do we go from here?)
• Operational funding by governments for
national biosafety functions;
• Donors: funding for regulatory capacity, not
just for R&D.
• Strategic, coordinated approach to outreach &
communication;
• Reposition the Biosafety Protocol for what it
was intended to be- not the “de facto” reg
framework it has become.
NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency

22. “Structural” issues
• Capacity at all level (infrastructure, technical
staff/ experts / lawyers / regulators / farmers…
etc…)
• Regional and global trade (free trade areas,
access to food aid)
• Trans-boundary movement (communities #
countries)
• Logistic (transportation, audits, monitoring)
• Seed laws – certification (poor processes,
exemptions…)
Croplife Confidential 22

23. Focus on Africa
23

24. Situational Reports: Zambia and
Malawi Policy Scenario
• Zambia implemented 2 very successful input
subsidy transfer progr in the 2000s, the
Fertilizer Support Progr and the Food Security
Pack. Success incurred huge budgetary &
admin costs.
• 2005/6 Malawi had a successful “smart”
subsidy- cannot be sustained.

25. Implementation of APPROPRIATE REGULATION is a
MUST to spur adoption of biotech crops in AFRICA
Source :Compiled by Clive James, 2012
2011 (3 countries)
South Africa, Burkina Faso
and Egypt
2015 (up to 10 countries)
South Africa, Burkina Faso,
Egypt, Mali, Togo, Nigeria,
Kenya, Uganda, Ghana
and Malawi
EGYPT
BURKINA
FASO
SOUTH
AFRICA
MALAWIBURKINA
FASO TOGO
UGANDA
SOUTH
AFRICA
EGYPT
KENYA
NIGERIA
MALI
KENYA
UGANDA
NIGERIA
Ongoing Biotech Crop Field Testing
GHANA

26. Conclusion
• Effective communication between natural
scientists and social scientists;
• Questions on socio-economic relevance in
biotech need to be answered;
• Application of PP should meet policy objectives
& help in the understanding of risks, benefits,
uncertainties & gaps in knowledge.
The opportunities to learn from experience
rather than in theory
NEPAD Planning and Coordinating Agency

27. Conclusion II
Sustainability of GMOs in Africa will require:
-policy direction;
-leadership by govt. agencies to maintain & enforce
biosafety compliance;
-on-going research by agric. scientists to monitor & assess
GMO performance and insect resistance development;
-a strong extension network to deliver training & info to
producers as appropriate;
- Unfair trade issues & the European factor settled;
- If Bt cotton success is sustained in Burkina it will serve as
a gateway to the future introduction and dev’t of other
biotech crops in Africa; having demonstrated the
scientific, legal & business infrastructures for GMOs in
Africa

28. Conclusion III
• With proper planning African countries can
adopt GM crops but not entirely on their own
• Strategies for transforming African agric. are
on going to address issues of low agric. (R&D)
investment & productivity, poor infrastr.,
application of yield-enhancing technologies,
unfavorable policy & regulatory environments
& climate change.
• When food security increased, nutrition &
health improve to promote productivity
AD Planning and Coordinating Agency