Food Security in Africa: The Future of GMOs

Despite numerous projects and collaborative efforts to implement genetically modified (GM) crop technology in Africa over the past 20 years, GM crops have struggled to maintain a foothold on the continent and rarely reach market approval or accessibility for small farmers. This is due to a number of reasons that include wavering consumer acceptability, hesitancy of large companies to invest in research and development (R&D), and the intricacies of cultural and historical land use in Africa.

With lower input costs and better returns to R&D, gene-editing (GE) technology offers a unique way forward for Africa’s agricultural industry. If these new plant breeding techniques allow African countries to more prolifically adopt GE technology in the future, it will be important to tailor the approach to smaller scale targeted regions and work directly with smallholder farmers who produce the majority of food in Sub-Saharan Africa. Furthermore, concerning agricultural trade, consideration might be given to expanding food imports. Future investment could include improving local staple crop varieties, such as cassava, millet, sorghum, and bananas, which constitute a large portion of Sub-Saharan African diets in rural areas most affected by food insecurity.

Ultimately, forward momentum in adopting agricultural biotechnology in Africa must involve a cooperation between domestic, foreign, social, economic, political, and scientific partners. Participation and willingness from the private sector will be an integral factor not only in the R&D stages, but also in developing the infrastructure and value-chains to support production.

Keywords: Feed the Future African countries; Food security; GMOs