Biotechnology & The ‘Beautiful’ Claims By Proponents

Prof. Kenneth E. Danso

Despite public perception about and/or outcry against crop and animal breeding and manufacturing of medicines through biotechnology also known as genetically modified organisms (GMOs), some leading Ghanaian scientists still insist the consumption of products resulting from biotechnology processes are safe and should be fully adopted. 

Like many proponents, Professor Kenneth Ellis Danso, Director of Biotechnology and Nuclear Agriculture Research Institute (BNARI) of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, said biotechnology applications allow the creation of new plant varieties and animal breeds with higher yields thereby ensuring food security.

He posits that, biotechnology leads to higher economic benefits for resource poor farmers because unlike conventional agriculture, a farmer who depends on biotechnology need not farm several acres of land, use so much pesticides, weedicides and fertiliser to control pests, weeds and enhance crop yields. “Biotechnology or genetic modification promotes pests and diseases resistance in crops and yields plentifully”, Prof. Danso intimated.

He also cited cassava brown streak virus (CSBV), one of the most damaging viral diseases of cassava in East Africa, saying “There is no known solution to this viral disease since all varieties are susceptible to the virus. Genetically modified cassava can be used to overcome the problem of CSBV”, he stated.

At a forum of scientists, researchers, students, ministers of state and parliamentarians at the Savanna Agricultural Research Institute (SARI) at Nyankpala in the Northern Region, Prof. Danso gave solid reasons for Ghana to fully adopt biotechnology. But other people at the forum also raised serious concerns about the safety of biotechnology to human health and the environment.

The forum, which was organised by Program for Biosafety Systems (PBS) of the International Food Policy and Research Institute (IFPRI), was intended to dispel the myths and misconceptions surrounding the use of biotechnology and shed more light on the benefits producers (farmers) and consumers can derive from it.

The forum, according to Daniel Osei Ofosu, Country Coordinator, PBS, was also to let many of the attendees see for the first time, field experiments of two varieties of Bt cotton which have been cultivated by SARI through biotechnology on a small scale to study their prospects with regard to pests’ resistance.

According to Prof. Danso, currently a number of crops have been genetically modified, citing maize (corn), cotton, soya bean, cowpea and pawpaw, adding that “Currently, Ghana has approved five confined field trials of GMOs one of which involves stacked genes. Of these are Bt cotton, Bt cowpea and NEWEST rice which are grown under confined field trials”, he said. 

The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines GMOs as organisms (plants, animals or microorganisms) in which the genetic material (DNA) has been altered in a way that does not occur naturally by mating and/or natural recombination. 

The technology is also called “modern biotechnology” or “gene technology”, sometimes also “recombinant DNA technology” or “genetic engineering”. It allows selected individual genes to be transferred from one organism into another, also between nonrelated species. Foods produced from or using GMOs are often referred to as GM foods.

Many academic reports including one by Erica Kannal, a dietician and certified health/fitness specialist with the America College of Sports Medicine, suggest that GM foods are relatively new to the food supply, and people have only been consuming these foods since the mid-1990s when the first GM tomatoes appeared in grocery stores.

In an article she published in February 2014, Erica said: “There is no long-term data on how genetically modified foods affect human health. Clinical trials done on animals that were fed GM crops are of short duration and show mixed outcomes”. 

She said a study published in the "International Journal of Biological Sciences" in December 2009, notes that rats fed GM corn had a decline in liver, kidney, heart, adrenal gland and spleen health and function. “Short-term studies in which animals were fed GM foods for only 4 weeks usually show few negative side effects. No research has been conducted on the health and safety for people who eat GM foods”, Erica stated.

Daniel O. Ofosu

According to Erica, in addition to one’s health, GM foods may have negative side effects on the environment, because “crops are often sprayed with powerful pesticides and herbicides, and are fertilized with chemical fertilizers. These chemicals then contaminate the environment by traveling through the air; they leach into the ground, where they end up in fresh-water sources. Weeds have begun to develop a resistance to some of these chemicals – which means that in the future, it will be more difficult to control noxious plants”, she stressed.

Erica further pointed out that, wind also carries the pollen from GM crops to neighbouring farms where seed stock is then cross-contaminated with GM pollen. “Over time, this leads to a reduction in the biodiversity of crop strains. Insect populations may also be harmed by GM crops that produce pesticides”, she observed.

However, the Country Coordinator of PBS Daniel Osei told the Nyankpala forum that, “all new products (GM) are carefully tested for safety related to animal and microbial life” before they are produced for consumption. “Soil persistence and the likelihood of surface and subsoil water effects are also considered”, he emphasised.

He dispelled claims by anti-GM campaigners, that Ghanaian farmers will be forced to buy seeds every year from multinational companies to sow, stressing that, even before GM applications are fully adopted by the government of Ghana, many farmers buy improved seeds every season for sowing. “No one is going to force farmers to plant GM. Those who are practicing conventional agriculture can continue to practice…….it’s only when you’re interested in GM you can buy GM seeds to cultivate and follow the lay down regulations set by regulatory bodies”, he opined.

Pic By Gary Cameron/ Reuters

Daniel Osei also indicated that, “the body of existing scientific evidence leads to the conclusion that there are no increased adverse health and environmental effects attributable to the use of recombinant DNA biotechnology in food production”. 

“With the current higher degree of regulatory oversight for all foods derived from recombinant DNA biotechnology, there is less likelihood of adverse effects to consumers than with new conventional foods. The agricultural biotechnology industry would benefit from a regulatory system that increases consumer confidence in food product safety”, Daniel Osei claimed. 

Meanwhile, on May 24, 2014, millions of people from around the world participated in a “March Against Monsanto”, calling for the permanent boycott of GM foods and other harmful agro-chemicals being manufactured by Monsanto, a U.S.-based multinational reported to have been spearheading the global campaign for GMOs. Marches occurred on six continents, in 52 countries, with events in more than 400 cities, including 47 U.S. states. 

GMOs, according to EcoWatch.Com, have been partially banned by Austria, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Japan, Luxembourg, Madeira, New Zealand, Peru, South America, Russia, France, Switzerland and Costa Rico, and are currently labelled in 62 countries. In India, more than 250,000 farmers have committed suicide after Monsanto’s Bt cotton seeds did not perform as promised. Farmers, left in desperate poverty, are opting to free their families of debt by drinking Monsanto pesticide, thereby ending their lives.

Attach Seriousness To Personal, Communal Hygiene–Minister Implores Residents

Alhaji A.B.A Fuseini

The Deputy Northern Regional Minister Alhaji A.B.A. Fuseini has implored residents and citizens of the Northern Region to attach seriousness to personal and communal hygiene since it is embarrassing for an outsider to draw their attention to their untidy surroundings.

According to Alhaji Fuseini, there is serious sanitation problem in parts of the region and said it is because residents and citizens have persistently failed to join efforts to engage in communal labour, a practice which could have enable them to deal with petty development challenges such as sanitation. 

The Deputy Regional Minister who is also the Legislator for the Sagnarigu Constituency made this call when he and the District Chief Executive (DCE) for Sagnarigu Alhassan Mohammed Sorogudoo jointly launched the President’s National Cleanup Campaign Exercise at Gumani, a suburb of the district.  

The cleanup exercise according to the DCE for Sagnarigu is aimed at educating the people of his district about the dangers associated with living in insanitary conditions and the benefits they can also derive from living in a clean environment.

He called on the people to join hands with officials of the Sagnarigu District Assembly to roll out a successful campaign since parts of the district is not tidy and therefore pose danger to the  health of residents.

Mr. Sorogudoo told Savannahnews, that aside public education on the dangers pose by insanitary conditions in the district, there will also be periodic cleanup exercises to the town and its surroundings off filth.

The Launch of the event also coincided with the 69^th anniversary celebration of the United Nations which was observed simultaneously across the globe at all UN regional and country offices.

UN Day marks the anniversary of the entry into force in 1945 of the UN Charter. With the ratification of this founding document by the majority of its signatories, including the five permanent members of the Security Council, the United Nations officially came into being. 

24 October has been celebrated as United Nations Day since 1948. In 1971, the United Nations General Assembly recommended that the day be observed by Member States as a public holiday.

Alhaji Fuseini also decried the negative accolade of the region as a bastion of conflict, noting that, “while we continue to fight, we dissipate our resources and derail development in our communities”.

He urged the people of Sagnarigu and Northern Region as a whole to espouse virtues that promote peaceful coexistence so that investors will be attracted to the area to enable government deal with the unemployment situation among the youth.

Meanwhile Mr. Abebe Hankore, Chair of the UN Zonal Office in Tamale who led staff of the organisation in a cleanup exercise in Gumani to mark the 69^th UN Day celebration, said every year an estimated 3, 040 Ghanaian women die while giving birth.

Addressing maternal mortality, he said, has been particularly challenging for Ghana and most developing countries, adding that, the government with support from the UN has put in place an MDG 5 acceleration Framework to help curb the problem.     

“Stop Downgrading Yourselves” –Unionist Implores Women

Ms Felicia Kraja

The Northern Regional Industrial Relations Officer of the Public Service Workers Union (PSWU) of the Trades Union Congress (TUC) Felicia Kraja, has called on Ghanaian women particularly those in the labour unions to “stop downgrading themselves” and compete for enviable positions.

According to Ms Kraja, the lack of confidence and the fear of being a failure are largely the reasons responsible for women not taking up leadership positions in the various unions, and thereby also contributing to the low representation of women at decision making levels.

“Some women are worth more than they think they’re…when they can come out of that shell….when they can feel deep within them that I am beyond what I think I am, then they will be able to perform wherever they go” Ms Kraja said this at a workshop of the Women’s Committee of the PSWU of the TUC in Tamale. 

She vehemently encouraged women in the various labour unions in Ghana to take time off their busy schedules and develop serious interest in labour matters as well as partake in elections in order to bring dynamism into the activities of labour unions which have mainly been male driven over the years.

Ghana has several labour unions which include the Industrial and Commercial Workers Union (ICU), Health Services Workers Union (HSWU), Government and Hospital Pharmacists Association of Ghana (GHOSPA), General Agricultural Workers Union (GAWU), PSWU, Civil and Local Government Staff Association of Ghana (CLOGSAG) and the Ghana Medical Association (GMA).

The rest are the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), Polytechnic Teachers Association of Ghana (POTAG), University Teachers Association of Ghana (UTAG), National Association of Graduate Teachers (NAGRAT), Teachers and Education Workers Union (TEWU), Federation of Universities Senior Staff Associations of Ghana (FUSSAG) and the Ghana Registered Nurses Association (GRNA) among others.

File picture

Sadly, leadership positions in most of these unions over the years have largely been occupied by men with just a handful of women serving as deputies or treasurers. Even in the mother union, TUC – a greater percentage of leadership positions are occupied by men and this is in contrast with the over 50 percent of women constituting the total work force of the country.

It is against this background that, the meeting of the PSWU in Tamale was held with an objective to whip up the interest of women trade unionists in the various labour unions to be bold to take up leadership positions at the regional and national levels.

Meanwhile, Member of the National Trustee of the PSWU Fati Seidu Tamboro charged women in the Union to be hungry for knowledge acquisition as well as build their capacities for certain tasks in their life in future.

“Enough of the telenovella and other things that will only waste your time. If you spend so much time on that, your husband will perceive you to be a lazy person and will not take you serious. However, when you educate yourself, build your capacity and you earn a good position and good salary, your husband will respect you and hold you in high esteem,” Ms Tamboro advised.

Tamale Landfill Site Mismanaged, Flies Invade Communities

Mayor of Tamale

RESIDENTS of Gbalai and Kulaa communities in the Tamale North Constituency in the newly created Sagnarigu District in the Northern Region of Ghana, are threatening fire and brimstone following the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly’s refusal to properly maintain its landfill site located in the area. 

The people and their Assemblyman Alhassan Seidu told Savannahnews during a visit to the landfill site that, they will mount road blocks to stop any vehicle that will be bringing waste to the landfill site, if the Assembly fails to properly maintain the place.

Due to the lack of proper maintenance of the only engineered landfill site in the region owned by the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly, the heaps of solid garbage and human excreta constantly being dumped at the site have began to decompose and breed colony of houseflies which invade the homes of residents.

This is the second time in two years that residents of the Gbalai and Kulaa communities are complaining of houseflies’ invasion into their homes and causing nuisance to them anytime they are cooking, serving or eating food.

Heaps of Garbage at the landfill site

In 2012, the same problem including other concerns emerged and it took the then Mayor and other Assembly officials to go and beg residents of the two communities to rescind their decision while they addressed the problem. 

At the moment, the hapless and helpless residents are expressing fears of being attacked by cholera and other health problems due to the constant invasion of numerous houseflies in their homes during the day.   

Assemblyman for the Gbalai and Kulaa Electoral Area Mr. Seidu told Savannahnews, that the same problem he and his people complained about in 2012 is the same problem that has emerged.

He said he had drawn the attention of the Mayor of Tamale Hanan Abdul-Rahman Gundado to the problem through a letter and was yet to receive an official response. “I have also informed my DCE for Sagnarigu…… he promised to speak to the Mayor of Tamale to see what they can do about it”, he said.

The District Chief Executive for Sagnarigu Alhassan Mohammed Soru-gudoo expressed surprised at the persistent insanitary conditions at the Tamale landfill site but admitted that, the Assembly is helpless over the situation.

He confirmed the numerous calls he has received from the Assemblyman of the two affected communities and the seriousness of the problem and indicated his readiness to address the problem in collaboration with the Tamale Metropolitan Assembly since it is their property, but unfortunately located in the Sagnarigu District.

Meanwhile, the Director of Public Affairs, Tamale Metropolitan Assembly Issah Musah Salifu also admitted in an interview with Savannahnews, that the present condition of the landfill site is terrible but downplayed assertions by the community people that the situation could cause a serious public health problem in the area.

Mr. Salifu however gave the assurance that Waste Management Company, Zoomlion Ghana, is assessing the situation and is getting ready to move to the site to address the problem before things get worse.