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Akoto Owusu Afriyie, Minister of Agriculture
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A scientist from the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) has described the Minister of Agriculture's claims that Ghana does not need GMOs, it is unfortunate.
Richard Ampadu-Ameyaw, Ph.D., said that with climate change, pests and diseases having a negative impact on agricultural production, farmers deserve to be able to choose the type of technology that they will want to apply to the production of food.
According to the Daily Graphic, Minister Akoto Owusu Afriyie, describing GMOs as a controversial subject against which a part of Ghanaian society was seriously opposed.
He told a meeting of 19 African countries responsible for the World Food Program (WFP) in Accra that "in fact we do not need it" because Ghana has enough improved seeds.
But Dr. Richard Ampadu-Ameyaw, coordinator of the Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB) for Ghana, does not agree with the minister.
"It's an unfortunate statement. Especially at a time when everyone is evolving in terms of technology. If you do not need it, other people need it. So, if a minister makes such an emphatic statement, especially from a farmer, it is an unfortunate statement for me, "he said in an interview.
"But I will not want him that much, in that he may not understand the problems very well. In particular, the science behind technology. Because if you understand technology, you will not talk that way, "said Dr. Ampadu, Ghana coordinator of the Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology (OFAB).
Ghanaian scientists have completed trials of the country's first GMO crop (cowpea Bt) with inherent resistance to destructive pests of the worm capsule, and are expected to soon be released commercially and environmental.
Related: CSIR scientists complete tests on a genetically modified cowpea variety
Davies Korboe, national president of the best farmer in Ghana in 2009, is also chairman of the badociation of winners of the National Farmers and Fishermen Awards, who said that Ghana needed GMOs to ensure its safety food.
"With regard to global warming, pests and diseases affecting our farms, the best way to do this is GMOs. Because we could have drought-resistant seeds, but also disease-resistant, high-yielding varieties, "he said.
"With GMOs, we save the environment. The application of chemicals will reduce. At present, we pollute the environment too much from weed killers, insecticides and other products. For GMOs, we need it, "he added.
Davies Korkoe said Ghana could not compete with other players in the international community without a conscious effort to promote advanced technologies.
"Any maturing economy should be limited in time. We should be able to see the future. We should be able to adapt to emerging technologies around the world. That's why GMOs are important because that's where the world is headed now, "he said.
He calls for a national dialogue so that a firm decision on GMOs is taken by the different stakeholders of the agricultural area.
Dr. Richard Ampadu-Ameyaw
"So we should have a national dialogue to see if we really need it or not and to end the situation. We should have a real national dialogue that allows some people to say no, "he added.
Ghana already open to GMOs
Ghana adopted in 2011 the National Biosafety Law which allows for the production and marketing of genetically modified crops in the country.
Mr. Richard Ampadu said that the application of improved technology to food production was not new and did not understand why the minister was afraid of it.
"Climate change is depriving a lot of our food crops. Therefore, it is necessary to put in place a technology to design food crops adapted to our times. Most of the things we eat today were not like that.
"How did we get the food we eat now? All of this is due to some of these changes and new technologies. And if the minister says we do not need it, then there is a problem, "he said.
"If you look at the agricultural policies we have in the country, it clearly indicates that we need advanced technologies. And one of these technologies is GM. Because there are diseases on the farm and there will be more diseases on food crops, the current technologies will not help us to solve them. And therefore, we have to match the diseases, "he said.
Ampadu is convinced that the application of GMO technology to food production is directly in line with the country's development plans. "We have biosecurity legislation that talks about biosecurity and biotechnology, and the minister says we do not need it? So why did we adopt this law?
"We have the Institute for Research in Biotechnology and Nuclear Agriculture (BNARI); it means that the vision was there. So why did we develop it? We have people who are at school, in universities, who are studying biotechnology, what are we going to do with it? Should the government spend money on them and then throw them out? So there are a lot of things around us that suggest we need this technology, "he said.
The Minister of Agriculture explained that the scientific community had studied and registered more than 58 different varieties of cereals, which could give 10 times more than ordinary cereals. Mr. Richard Ampadu fears that this comment will divert Ghana's plans for the commercialization of GMOs.
"It is possible that this statement may influence the direction of marketing. If he sits in the cabinet where I'm not sitting and that no scientist is sitting, and that he's filing the message that we do not need it, it could affect policies. But they will not know what others, like the farmers, say, "he said.
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