Latest Resources

28 January 2010

Marketing of GE potatoes in South Africa imminent: African farmers face loss of markets and consu...

South Africa’s Agricultural Research Council (ARC) has developed a GE-insect resistant potato (SpuntaG2, which is a Bt potato) with the support of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). This potato now awaits safety assessment and general release approval from the national authorities. Read here.

13 January 2010

Africa’s Green Revolution Drought Tolerant Maize Scam

Prediction of exacerbated drought in Africa due to climate change is apparently the driving force behind the establishment of the Water Efficient Maize for Africa (WEMA) initiative, another prong of the so-called ‘New Green Revolution for Africa’ WEMA seeks to develop drought tolerant maize varieties through a program which is being presented as a panacea […]

11 December 2009

Africa’s Granary Plundered Privatisation of Tanzanian Sorghum Protected by the Seed Treaty

A gene recently isolated from a Tanzanian farmers’ variety of sorghum may yield tremendous pros for multinational companies and government researchers in the United States and Brazil. Called SbMATE, it is not only useful in sorghum; but also may be used in other crops, including genetically engineered (GE) maize, wheat, and rice as well as […]

5 December 2009

JENNIFER THOMSON’S GM Virus Resistant Maize

During 2007, researchers from the University of Cape Town (UCT), particularly Professor Jennifer Thompson, in collaboration with Pannar seed South Africa, announced that they had developed transgene-derived resistance to the pathogen Maize-Streak-Virus (MSV). They also claimed to have developed the first maize with transgenic MSV resistance, heralding the first all-African produced genetically modified crop plant.[i] […]

9 November 2009

Response from the AU Commission Biosafety Unit to Briefing no. 9

In July 2009 The African Union Biosafety Unit communicated their concerns about the ACB’s briefing no.9, their letter can be viewed here. The original briefing can be viewed at here, The ACB’s response is titled On-going concerns about harmonisation of biosafety regulations in Africa, November 2009.

28 September 2009

Patents, Climate Change and African Agriculture: Dire Predictions

Uncertainty and apprehension often afford opportunity to the cunning. This is certainly the case with climate change. The multinational seed and agrochemical industry see climate change as a means by which to further penetrate African agricultural markets by rhetorically positioning itself, even if implausibly, as having the solution to widespread climate concerns. Their so-called “final […]

31 August 2009

Genes from Africa: the colonisation of African DNA

“You people. We thought you folks had taken everything you could. You took our land, you took our homes. You stole our pottery and our songs and our blankets and our designs. You took our language and, in some places, you even took our children. You snatched at our religion and at our women. You […]

10 August 2009

Critical overview of South Africa’s Bioprospecting laws

In this booklet, we provide an overview of the core provisions of the legislative framework governing bioprospecting, access and benefit sharing in South Africa. In particular, we highlight the lack of opportunity for public participation by civil society in the bioprospecting permitting process, problems with accessing information, issues relating to the restricted appeal process, and […]

19 June 2009

Revised African Model Law Biosafety Strategy Briefing June 2009

Haidee Swanby of the African Centre for Biosafety attended a meeting hosted by the African Union during May 2009 in Arusha, Tanzania on various biosafety initiatives of importance to the continent. In this briefing paper Haidee discusses the meeting and the issues and challenges lying ahead for the continent. Read here.