Africans seek WHO direction over GM relief aid
Date: 03-Oct-02
Country: ANGOLA
Author: Manoah Esipisu
Some 14 million people from Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Lesotho and Swaziland are facing severe food shortages but a refusal or reluctance to accept GM-relief by some countries has led to lengthy delays in shipping supplies.
The six nations are part of the 14-member Southern African Development Community (SADC), whose council of ministers ended a two-day meeting yesterday ahead of the annual summit of SADC heads of state and government starting on Wednesday.
Ana Dias Lourenco, Angola's planning minister and chair of SADC's ministerial council, told a news conference in Angola that the ministers had not found common ground on GMs, adding the issue would be high on the agenda.
"Persistent concerns have been raised over the safety of GM maize, and this has seriously jeopardised the delivery of food aid to vulnerable people that require it urgently across southern Africa," Lourenco told reporters.
A delegation of 20 SADC biotechnologists and other researchers would visit the United States to review the latest biotechnology research and study results from health and safety tests on GM foods, she said.
Zimbabwe, Malawi and Mozambique say they will accept only milled GM relief supplies but Zambia has banned GM food and will not even allow it to be distributed to some 255,000 refugees from Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo living in camps there.
Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa says his country is prepared to plug its food deficit with commercial imports.
Lesotho and Swaziland have made no formal stand on GMs.
Yesterday, SADC ministers approved the creation of an advisory committee on GMs which will draw guidelines on how SADC members should deal with the GM question. The committee will hold its first sitting this week to discuss delays in shipments of relief to the region because of the GM debate.
SADC comprises Angola, Botswana the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lesotho, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
