Southern African nations seek GMO advisory body
Date: 20-Sep-02
Country: BOTSWANA
The move to establish a committee comes as more than 14
million people face starvation in southern Africa, where
drought, HIV-AIDS and politics are blamed for the region's
worst food crisis in a decade.
But several governments in the region have been reluctant to
accept GM food aid, much of it from the United States which
cannot certify its donations as GM-free.
"The absence of a harmonised regional policy on genetically
modified organisms is creating problems with regard to the
movement of food items," said Southern African Development
Community (SADC) Executive Secretary Prega Ramsamy.
"This is particularly serious given the current (food)
crisis," he told journalists, ahead of the organisation's
summit meeting in Angola next month.
At the summit the agriculture ministers would look into food
safety concerns, the impact of GM food on the environment,
ethical issues, trade with countries who would not accept
GMOs, and access to seeds by small-scale farmers, he said.
The ministers would recommend that each of the 14 SADC
member states take a position to accept or reject GM grain
as food aid.
"Longer term, member states should develop the capacity to
deal with GMO issues," Ramsamy said, adding that the
advisory committee would help with this process.
SADC comprises of Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of
Congo, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia,
Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia,
Zimbabwe.
Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe
have been worst hit by the food crisis, but Angola and the
Democratic Republic of Congo have forecast shortages.
U.N. special envoy for humitarian needs James Morris said on
Monday the number of vulnerable people ahead of next year's
harvest had jumped to 14.4 million from 12.8 million in May.
