Africa has taken a major step towards strengthening access to credible biotechnology and biosafety information following the launch of a continental digital platform designed to make regulatory data easier to access, understand and use.
Known as the Biotech Africa Database Platform, the portal provides country specific information on biotech crop approval decisions and summaries of key regulatory requirements for the import, export and transit of biotech products. It also offers a quick guide to application processes governing the movement of biotech products across borders.
The platform, developed by the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri biotech Applications (ISAAA AfriCenter) and its partners, is expected to support informed decision making, improve regulatory transparency, promote regional learning and encourage the responsible deployment of agricultural biotechnology across the continent.
For many years, biotechnology and biosafety information in Africa has been scattered across multiple agency websites, gazette notices and regulatory documents, making it difficult for users to access and interpret. This fragmentation has often resulted in delays, compliance risks and uncertainty for traders, regulators and other value chain actors operating across borders.
The Biotech Africa Database Platform seeks to address this challenge by bringing together accurate and up to date information on biosafety regulations, approval decisions and regulatory processes in one central location.
The platform is expected to benefit traders, regulators, researchers and other stakeholders who require quick and reliable access to regulatory approval decisions and biosafety information.
Speaking during the launch, ISAAA AfriCenter Director Dr Margaret Karembu described the platform as a major milestone in harnessing digital data to support regulatory decision making across Africa.
“Today we have opened a door where data replaces rumours, where a farmer in Kampala sees the same biotech information as a researcher in Kaduna, a trader in Johannesburg and a policy maker in Addis Ababa,” said Dr Karembu.
Kenya is among 73 countries currently cultivating or trading biotech crops. Farmers in the country grow bollworm resistant genetically modified cotton, which received commercial approval in December 2019.
Kenya’s Biosafety Law permits the importation of genetically modified organisms through an application process outlined in the First Schedule of the Biosafety (Import, Export and Transit) Regulations, 2011, followed by the issuance of written approval.
Globally, more than 20 biotech crops are cultivated in 31 countries, covering approximately 218.71 million hectares. An additional 29 countries import biotech crops or products for food, feed and processing.
In Africa, six biotech crops have been approved for cultivation in 10 countries: South Africa, Sudan, Malawi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Nigeria, Eswatini, Ghana, Burkina Faso and Rwanda. The approved crops include cassava, cotton, cowpea, maize, potato and soybean.
These biotech crops have been developed with traits such as drought tolerance, pest and disease resistance, enhanced nutritional value, higher productivity and herbicide tolerance. Africa currently cultivates about 3.98 million hectares of biotech crops, accounting for nearly 2 percent of the global biotech crop area.
Biotechnology has played an important role in improving the livelihoods of more than 17 million small scale farmers in developing countries. By increasing crop yields and reducing reliance on costly chemical inputs, biotech crops have helped farmers, their families and communities build more stable and resilient livelihoods.
