Ugandan legislators pressed on passing GMO law quickly

Supporters of GMOs say farmers will not experience as much crop damage as pictured above if biotechnology is fully adopted in the country. COURTESY PHOTO

KAMPALA, UGANDA - A cross section of farmers and national legislators want the outgoing Parliament to quickly pass the Biosafety and Biotechnology Bill 2012 before their term ends this month. 

Farmers say the failure by the legislators to pass the Bill has denied farmers chances to access modern technologies being developed by the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO) centres spread across the country.
Dominic Ettellu, a farmer from Teso region in eastern Uganda and Chairperson of Uganda National Biotechnology Farmers’ Forum told East African Business Week cassava production in the Teso sub-region has gone down due to the outbreak of the cassava mosaic disease. Cassava is a regional staple.
 “Cassava production in the region has gone down because of cassava diseases. This has affected farmers economically because revenue from the crop has gone down.  The only way to help farmers is to allow them adopt the technologies which our local scientists have developed to support farmer to mitigate the challenges of cassava mosaic.  But that cannot be done when parliament has not okayed the application of biotechnology in the country,” he said.
Other farmers from Central, Western and West Nile regions share the same sentiments. Ugandan scientist through the application of biotechnology have developed maize, banana, cassava and cotton varieties that are resistant to drought and disease. However these varieties have not been released to the public because the country’s legislators have not passed the law which regulates the application of biotechnology in Uganda.
The Biosafety and Biotechnology Bill 2012 has been on the floor of Parliament for about three years now since being tabled by the then chairperson of Parliamentary Committee on Science and Technology, Denis Obua.
Critics say growing of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the country will adversely affect Ugandans both medically and make farming more expensive.
Annet Nyaketcho,  the vice Chairperson of the Chairperson of Parliamentary committee on Science and Technology said the Bill should be passed to enable farmer’s access to better and cheaper technologies.
“Some African Countries are growing genetically engineered crops like maize, cassava and the World Health Organisation has not come out to inform the world that people in those countries have died of GMO foods. Why can’t Uganda also go biotechnology for the good of the agriculture sector?” she said.
About 20 legislators promised to compel the Minister of Finance Planning and Economic Development to re-table the Bill before Parliament for discussion.
Arthur Makara ,the Executive Director SCIFODE told legislators biotechnology application in the agriculture sector will reduce the cost of farming because GMO crops  require less use of herbicides and fertilizers which makes them environmentally friendly.  
However, the Uganda Biosafety and Biotechnology consortium told East African Business Week if the Bill is not passed, the Ugandan market will be flooded with GMO products from Tanzania and Kenya.
“Our neighbours  have biotechnology regulation and their regulators have stated receiving  application for massive production of GMO crops.  If Uganda  fails to pass the Bill these crops will be exported into the country. We need the regulation to regulate  the application of biotechnology,” Erastus  Nsubuga, the Chairperson of the consortium said.

By Samuel Nabwiiso