As we approach the end of another remarkable year, I am filled with immense pride and gratitude for the strides we have made together in 2024. This year has been a testament to our resilience, innovation, and unwavering commitment to our mission of transforming Africa’s biosciences landscape.
When we began this year, we set out with bold ambitions. These included efforts towards enhancing the bi-innovations ecosystem, advancing science communication and diplomacy, fostering policy and regulatory clarity, creating responsive platforms for knowledge sharing and multi-stakeholders engagement. Thanks to our collective dedication, we have achieved remarkable milestones.
In Kenya, we celebrated the regulatory clearance for Striga Smart Sorghum for Africa to proceed as conventionally bred varieties. This pivotal decision culminated in the planting of the first stewarded field trials in April 2024, which have demonstrated promising results, offering a glimmer of hope to smallholder farmers battling the devastating parasitic weed, Striga.
We also witnessed a historic win when Kenya’s High Court dismissed a petition against lifting the 12-year ban on GMOs. This victory was bolstered by our steadfast commitment to providing factual information through strategically convening multi-stakeholders, including engaging legal professionals. We hosted five rapid-response meetings to address the GMO court hearing. These engagements exemplify our ability to respond swiftly to emerging challenges while maintaining focus on fostering partnerships and driving shared goals. Additionally, Burkina Faso came back to the list of GM crop-adopting countries with approval for cultivation of Bt cotton hybrids from 2024 to 2033 … Read Complete Article