1.Scientists, others caution against biotech products - Nigeria
2.COMMNUNIQUE OF ONE DAY NATIONAL WORKSHOP ON BIOSAFETY AND THE PEOPLE - Nigeria

COMMENT

Yesterday a workshop was organized by IITA, USAID and the government biotech agencies in Akure, Nigeria. The purpose was to sell agricultural biotechnology to the local people and government officials. They hyped GM maize in Kenya (Syngenta Foundation's GM maize to withstand stem borers) and Monsanto's Bt Cotton in South Africa as positive developments. Environmental Rights Action (ERA) activists were on hand to debunk these myths and to present an alternative viewpoint.
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1.Scientists, others caution against biotech products
By Uduma Kalu
The Guardian (Lagos),
http://www.guardiannewsngr.com

SCIENTISTS and farmers were among some stakeholders at the weekend that cautioned against biotechnology products.

The warning came as multinational corporations intensified efforts to introduce the products into Africa.

But in Nigeria, a bill for the regulation of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) and related products has been sent to the National Assembly. Many Nigerians do not seem to be aware of the issues at hand and so little is known about the bill.

To increase the understanding of the bill, government officials and the civil society have been asked to begin a public enlightenment campaign. The media have also been advised to live up to the responsibility of informing the public on modern biotechnology issues.

These were some of the issues discussed last weekend in Abuja where international groups, including scientists, government agencies and ministries, farmer organisations, legal practitioners, academics, media practitioners and students met at a seminar organised by the Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth, Nigeria (ERA/ FoEN) entitled: "National Workshop on Biosafety and the People: Towards a Strict GMO Law".

At the end of their one-day workshop, the participants drawn from Nigeria, Cameroun, Ghana and Togo recalled that Nigeria was a party to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and that the convention mandated the country to put in place effective biosafety laws.

They, therefore, called for a moratorium on the introduction of GMOs in Nigeria until effective legislative, administrative and infrastrctural framework for the regulation of modern biotechnology was put in place.

In a statement at the end of their one-day workshop, the participants expressed worry over the potential health and environmental hazards associated with modern biotechnology products and non-availability of evidence-based science to allay those fears.

Calling for a comprehensive risk assessment and risk management plan before the introduction of modern biotechnology products, the group said there "should be clear provisions in the biosafety bill to guarantee an enforceable liability regime, unambiguous labelling on any GMO or product thereof because the consumer has to know".

The statement also called for introduction of a section in the biosafety bill on "protected areas" or GMO-free-zones where the release of GMOs will be prohibited.

"As a start, all protected areas/forests/ community lands should be declared no-go-areas for GMOs. Communities, local councils, states and regions should immediately commence processes by which they can regulate or declare themselves GMO-free", the statement read.

The group went on to call for a transparent and speedy process with full public participation in enacting a Biosafety Act that would be based on precautionary principle and would be effective for the protection of public health and the environment from the hazards of modern biotechnology products.
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2.COMMNUNIQUE OF ONE DAY NATIONAL WORKSHOP ON BIOSAFETY AND THE PEOPLE
ABUJA, November 25, 2005

The Environmental Rights Action/Friends of the Earth, Nigeria (ERA/FoEN) on November 25, 2005 organized a "National Workshop on Biosafety and the People: Towards a Strict GMO Law" in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The conference brought together civil society groups, scientists, government agencies and ministries, farmer organizations, legal practitioners, academics, media practitioners and students, to deliberate on the planned bill to regulate the introduction of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and related products in the country.

The participants;

Alarmed by intensified efforts of multinational corporations towards the introduction of modern biotechnology products in Africa despite the lack of existing legal, administrative and infrastructural frameworks to regulate the products;

Worried by the potential health and environmental hazards associated with modern biotechnology products and the non-availability of evidence-based science to allay those fears;

Concerned by the implication of introduction of GMOs on local livelihoods particularly local farmers that will be at the mercy of transnational seed manufacturing companies;

Acknowledging the fact that the solution to food security in Nigeria is not in GMOs as being promoted by modern biotechnology giants, but improved farming practices, good infrastructure, modern storage facilities and effective distribution networks for agricultural products;

Recalling that Nigeria is a Party to the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and that the convention mandates the country to put in place effective biosafety laws;

Recognizing the efforts of the Federal Ministry of Environment in initiating a Biosafety bill to regulate modern biotechnology products in the country

The participants recommended:

Moratorium on the introduction of GMOs in Nigeria until effective legislative, administrative and infrastructural framework for the regulation of modern biotechnology is put in place;

Comprehensive risk assessment and risk management plan before the introduction of modern biotechnology products;

Clear provisions in the Biosafety bill to guarantee an enforceable liability regime, unambiguous labeling on any GMO or product thereof because the consumer has the right to know;

Introduction of a section in the Biosafety bill on "Protected areas" or GMO - Free - Zones where the release of GMOs will be prohibited. As a start, all protected areas/forests/community lands should be declared no-go areas for GMOs. Communities, Local governments, states and regions should immediately commence processes by which they can regulate or declare themselves GMO free;

Transparent and speedy process with full public participation in enacting a Biosafety Act that will be based on precautionary principle and is effective for the protection of public health and the environment from the hazards of modern biotechnology products, and

Government and civil society should make deliberate effort for public enlightenment and participation. The media should also live up to the responsibility of informing the public on modern biotechnology issues.