Malawi formulate national legislation to reject GM maize!

By Brenda Zulu
Malawi must formulate a national legislation to reject Genetic Modification (GM) maize, until it undertakes a scientific assessment of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) on human health and biodiversity.
Presenting the food aid analysis and its effects at the Southern Africa Social Forum (SASF), Edson Musopole from Action Aid said the decision with regard to the acceptance of GM commodities as part of food aid transactions rests with recipient’s country.
Musopole noted that alternative source of non GM food are usually available in local or non GM maize neighbouring countries.
He said Malawi had more and more become dependent on food aid which also comes in form of GM maize.
Musopole said the Malawian Government needs to develop policies to provide donors with a code of conduct which helps to free food aid from its negative image of being tool for rich countries to get rid of their surplus production.
He observed that food distribution by different humanitarian agencies, NGOs, and donors needs to be well coordinated by the Government to ensure that such programmes are geared towards the on going term fight against hunger.
He noted that the land distribution under the new land policy should be encouraged to improve to land and land utilization.
He explained that food aid has been a relief to people who have had experienced drought and hunger problems. He however noted that food aid has played a significant role in the past in periods of acute food shortages it has managed to save lives.
It was observed that at national level, food aid has added to food grain availability and helped to reduce the food gap beaten food grain consumption needs and supply from domestic production.
The controversy surrounding food aid was that it was expensive and not an effective tool for combating chronic food insecurity where by the recipients of food aid becomes dependent on it.
It noted that access to food aid was a basic human right as when people are starving donors feel obliged to assist. Critics argued that donors took advantage of the hunger situation to get rid of their surplus grain.
He outlined the factors contributing to household food insecurity as access to land utilisation, access to credit, unavailability and weak Agricultural extension and technology transfer and the dependence on rain fed agriculture.
He noted that food aid had different perceptions on it was as some sections of people said it was a method of disposing of food surpluses production in industrialised countries as this was one of the policy tool for promoting economic development in recipient countries.
Food aid has a negative effect in that it has led to the neglect of agriculture. The availability of cheap or free food aid can lead to policymakers to neglect agriculture especially under inadequate public investment in rural infrastructure, agricultural research and extension.
Food aid has an effect on local production as it has the ability to distort the domestic food economy. Food aid deliveries increase the food supply, thereby depressing prices received by local producers.
Food aid also creates a dependency syndrome where by communities who receive food aid for a lengthy period of time they grow accustomed to it for instance Ethiopia is a recipient food aid from 1984. Distortion of the local labour markets like provision of food for work programmes has distorted local labour markets, if the timing is poor.
Musopole argued that there was need to redefine the role of food aid in Malawi on local and regional procument. This is because there are significant disadvantages when food aid is supplied in kind. Need to support local procurements, provided there are surpluses in some parts of the country, support regional procument from the neighbouring countries.
He said there was also need to for cash transfers rather than in kind transfers saying it were noted that as long as local or triangular procurements was possible, the disincentive effects of food aid on domestic production can be avoided by proving cash rather than food in kind.
There was also need for relief aid to structural support as food aid needs to be embedded in programs that go beyond relief aid.
There was also need to look at the problem of contamination as there was a serious threat of the GM maize being planted and cross pollinating with varieties.
Milling was not seen as a viable option because it reduces the shelf life of maize increases handling costs and the risk of infestation etc.
The Malawian Government needs to develop policies to provide donors with a code of conduct which helps to free food aid from its negative image of being tool for rich countries to get rid of their surplus production.
Biotechnology is any technical application that uses biological systems, living organisms, or their derivatives to make or modify products or process. GM allows the transfer of genetic material between unrelated organisms that allow under normal conditions never able to breed. GMO are organisms whose genetic material has been arterially changed to enable them to perform functions that they would not naturally do.