While African countries face severe constraints in the development and accessing biotechnology research and development due to a number of factors such as; their declining economies, the debt burden, lack of indigenous industrial base and lack of capacity (human and infrastructure); they must nevertheless invest and formulate, national and regional policies in biotechnology research and development because: (1) Research in agricultural biotechnology holds the potential promise for agricultural and industrial growth, leading to production of improved crops and improved methods in animal husbandry. Policy considerations are needed because agricultural biotechnology also holds the potential harm such as the Terminator Technology in seed and also in the potential exploration of tissue from indigenous peoples with no benefit sharing. (2) The geopolitical world resource distribution is in favour of African countries. The abundant potential in biodiversity and genetic resources will not realize its full economic and developmental potential unless exploited by African countries themselves. Special policies need to be put in place to enable African countries to exploit the resources. (3) The global investment in biotechnology shows that developed countries take the technology seriously; African countries can ignore the technology at their own peril, they must formulate strong policy framework. (4) The developed countries have also shown that the global research and development resource expenditure is in favour of the developed countries; but the genetic resources to be exploited must come from the South. Are there any policies to protect the net-loss in these resources? (5) African countries need to access biotechnology research and development to enable them to exploit their abundant genetic resources for economic benefit and industrial development. (6) African countries need strong policies to prevent biopiracy which is practiced through bioprospecting activities sanctioned by Convention on Biological Diversity. (7) More importantly African countries need a strong policy on biotechnology because they need to access the products of biotechnology which are and will be available on the market place. The majority of the biotechnology products on the market place are staples, commercial or industrial crops; important to Africa such as; transgenic maize, potato, sweet potato, tomato, strawberries, tobacco and others to come. The agro-based economies of most African countries depend on these targeted crops. If the African countries do not access biotechnology research and development, the new biotechnology revolution, will by-pass them, as was the case with the Green Revolution. (8) In the area of animal biotechnology, the practice of human and animal tissue trade and the consequent transfer of tissue through third countries, have high economic stakes for the benefit of the developed countries. African countries need to have a share of this budding market niche. Strong policy considerations must be formulated. Biotechnology has brought the new human cloning technology. Do the African countries have any policy framework regarding the cloning of humans?

English

0103|AL-ABC Program|AGRIS 0102|AJ

Jose Juan Caballero

CIMMYT Publications Collection