Momodou Camara & Tony Cisse,
Your postings on GMOs and the current debate in Europe
are extremely important topics and relevant to Africa
and to The Gambia,especially at a period when the
continent is faced with decline in production and in
productivity in the agricultural sector-the most
important sector of our economies. Of course,these
declines are as a result of several factors which we
need not get into here.FAO has cited inadequate public
investment as a major cause of the decline(see
relevant posting).However,one factor that has plagued
Gambian agriculture over the years has been the lack
of appropriate high-yield varieties.Where
available,its introduction invariably poses problems
of adaptability to the local farming methods and less
than adequate extension services. Given these and
other constraints,it is tempting to resort to
genetically modified seeds and understandably so.

However,the introduction of GM seeds may not be the
most appropriate strategy to adopt given the
environmental and health questions purportedly
associated with it.Unless these questions are
adequately answered,backed by hard scientific
evidence,I will not recommend its introduction in
Africa and/or Gambian agriculture at this juncture.The
risks are simply too great from both the environmental
and health point of view.

NARI, which I visited recently, is doing interesting
research, including the introduction of new cash
crops,such as the high-yielding mushroom variety from
Zimbabwe,I believe. The Institute is collaborating
with the Yundum/Banjulunding Women's Horticultural
group and they appear to be progressing
satisfactorily.A group of young,highly competent and
dedicated scientists at NARI led by Dr.Bruce-Oliver
and include the likes of Dr.Jeng (and Ousman Othman as
Chairman of the Board of Directors) could share their
wealth of knowledge of Gambian agriculture and respond
to the questions posed by both Momodou Camara and Tony
Cisse. Meanwhile,I salute the both of you for bringing
this important topic up and I hope that the NARI
scientists will contribute to this and other issues
related to the important work they are carrying out in
The Gambia.
sidi sanneh

--- Momodou Camara <[log in to unmask]>
wrote:
>  Jaajef Tony,
> I have similar opinion like you with regards to the
> posting I forwarded to the
> list on biotechnology some days ago especially
> concerns such as health issues
> and a new dependency on certain seeds.  However with
> the technology of today,
> there is no way of going back. I think if today gene
> manipulation of crops help
> our poor farmers in producing crops that are more
> resistance to insects and
> weeds and safe for our health, then it is worth
> trying.
>
> Below is another article about another project in
> Kenya.
>
> I have a question for the members of the list who
> are working with NARI and
> NARB: Do we have similar projects in The Gambia?
>
> regards,
> Momodou Camara
>                       *** 03-Mar-0* ***
>
> Title: ECONOMY-KENYA: New Maize Variety To Boost
> Harvests
>
> By Judith Achieng'
>
> NAIROBI, Mar 03 (IPS) - Kenyan scientists are in the
> process of
> developing a new insect resistant maize variety
> expected to save
> farmers millions of dollars in chemical pesticides
> costs.
>
> The Insect Resistant Maize for Africa (IRMA)
> project, being
> researched under the Kenya Agricultural Research
> Institute (KARI),
> with the help of the International Maize and Wheat
> Improvement
> Centre (CIMMYT). It is also expected to prevent up
> to 40 percent
> of crop losses resulting from damage caused by
> pests.
>
> The maize variety is expected to hit the local
> market in the
> next seven years.
>
> "We should spare no technology in our efforts to
> develop and
> deliver insect resistant maize varieties to Kenyan
> farmers," says
> Cyrus Ndiritu, who heads KARI.
>
> "There is enough food in the world for every human
> being, but
> we cannot sit and wait for others to put it on our
> table. But it
> is better for us to produce our own," he says.
>
> Ndiritu says the new IRMA project aims at uplifting
> the living
> standards of poor small-scale farmers and promote
> food self
> sufficiency in the East African country.
>
> Maize is Kenya's staple food crop with a per capita
> consumption
> of 125 kilogrammes, but the East African country has
> yet to
> achieve self-sufficiency in the grain.
>
> This is mainly due to a rapidly growing population,
> shortage of
> arable land and unfavourable weather patterns
> forcing it to
> import maize to meet its local demand.
>
> "The contribution of maize in Kenyan agriculture and
> economy
> cannot be overstated. But, though elusive, by no
> means have we
> given up on trying to attain the maize sufficiency
> goal," says
> Kenya's agriculture director, Wilfred Mwangi.
>
> Over 50 percent of Kenya's population of 29 million
> people are
> reported to be living below the poverty datum line.
>
> "Kenya has the capacity to produce sufficient food
> for her
> people and even for export, however, new innovative
> methods are
> required to be put in place if this is to be
> attained," Kenya's
> agriculture minister, Chris Obure, told a gathering
> of
> stakeholders in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi this
> week.
>
> "Kenya's population growth rate is estimated at 3,5
> percent per
> annum, yet its maize production has stagnated at
> about 30 million
> bags.
>
> "This trend is increasing poverty in Kenya, a fact
> that is of
> much concern to the government, he said.
>
> But the number one problem faced by farmers in Kenya
> is crop
> losses of between 15 to 40 percent due to
> infestations by stalk
> borers, one of the most serious maize pests,
> translating to 6,3
> billion shillings in terms of lost income to
> farmers.
>
> For individual farmers, infestations of these pests
> can
> decimate whole fields of maize, depriving rural
> families of vital
> income and a year's supply of their main food
> source.
>
> "The problem to overcome-damage to maize harvest
> inflicted by
> insects is acknowledged and innovative solutions are
> available,
> but not yet accessible in sub-Saharan Africa," said
> the Kenyan
> minister.
>
> (one US Dollar is equal to 70 shillings)
>
> "Without insecticides, the borers typically cut crop
> yields by
> about 15 percent and severe infestations can
> devastate entire
> fields.
>
> "By developing borer resistant varieties, we put
> more maize
> into the harvest basket of those farmers and their
> families who
> are too poor to purchase those chemicals," says
> Timothy Reeves who
> heads the Mexico based CIMMYT.
>
> With a limited agricultural land and 75 percent of
> its total
> land surface classified under arid or semi-arid
> zone, scientists
> like Ndiritu say Kenya's only chance to enhance its
> food
> production is through intensified agricultural
> production per unit
> area and intensification of pest pressure.
>
> Developing resistant varieties, according to
> Ndiritu, would
> ensure the technology is encapsulated in the seed
> and sold to the
> farmers at no extra cost, and reduce dependency on
> pesticides
> which small scale farmers are poorly equipped to
> handle.
>
> "If our farmers cannot buy fertilisers how can we
> expect them
> to spray their crops?" asks Ndiritu.
>
> The new genetically engineered pest resistant maize
> variety,
> according to Ndiritu, will contain genetic qualities
> of Bacillus
> thurengiensis (Bt), a bacteria naturally occurring
> in the soil but
> harmful to specific crop pests.
>
> The project involves incorporation of specific genes
> of Bt into
> local maize varieties to 'vaccinate' them against
> pest attacks.
>
> "This is exciting because, farmers who could not
> afford to buy
> pesticides, now will have an alternative without
> extra costs," he
> told IPS.
>
> CIMMYT says the new maize which is resistant to
> borer pest
> could benefit farmers and is key to addressing the
> food security
>
=== message truncated ===


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