Philanthropic colonialism: embedding agribusiness and GMOs into African agriculture - The Ecologist
▻http://www.theecologist.org/blogs_and_comments/Blogs/2987504/philanthropic_colonialism_embedding_agribusiness_and_gmos_into_african
The African Centre for Biodiversity (ACB) has just released the report For your own good!, which outlines the GMO industry’s expansion across Africa.
The report focusses on non-commercial traditional crops, such as cassava, sorghum, sweet potato, pigeon pea, cowpea, banana and rice, which corporations are attempting to genetically modify and roll out under the guise of philanthropy.
The report reveals that a great deal of research and development is currently underway into the genetic modification (GM) of these crops.
Most of the on-going trials concentrate on drought and salt tolerance, nitrogen use efficiency, resistance to tropical pests and diseases and nutritional enhancement (biofortification). The key countries that have been targeted include Burkina Faso, Egypt, Ghana, Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda and Malawi.
The genesis of GM research into these crops can be found in royalty-free donations of various patented GM traits by several transnational companies to experimental programmes undertaken by African scientists employed by government ministries. These companies include Monsanto, Dupont and Pioneer Hi-bred.
“The GM industry, under the veil of technology donations and public financing, is effectively managing to make further inroads into imposing GM on the African continent”, says Mariam Mayet, Director of the ACB.
“By focusing the research on traits meant to ’benefit’ farmers and malnourished populations, through inter alia, biofortification, the industry is intent on giving a humanitarian face to the real involvement, vested interests and expanding influence of these MNCs in African agriculture.”
The chicanery behind GM non-commercial ‘orphan crops’ and rice for Africa...
▻http://acbio.org.za/the-chicanery-behind-gm-non-commercial-orphan-crops-and-rice-for-africa
