In the Synthesis of the Malabo Declaration on African Agriculture and Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme(CAADP,) the Heads of States and Government of the African Union met in June 2014, in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea.
The meeting saw the adoption of two decisions and two declarations which directly related to CAADP and Africa’s agricultural transformation and food security agenda in the 2015-2025 decade.
The CAADP is Africa’s policy framework for agricultural transformation, wealth creation, food security and nutrition, economic growth and prosperity for all.
The African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD) prioritised the integration of science-driven innovations into its programs and initiatives throughout Africa, supported by solution-focused research and development.
The AUDA-NEPAD Centre of Excellence in Science, Technology, and Innovation (CoE-STI) is leading an endeavour to harness the potential of genome editing, a rapidly evolving suite of biotechnology tools.
The primary objective of this initiative is to promote the widespread adoption of genome editing tools by AU Member States, with a focus on effective science communication and advocacy to drive viable and competitive agricultural and agro-industry transformation.
The relevance and intervention of this genome editing initiative in agriculture to the exponential population growth in Nigeria and the challenge of food security cannot be overemphasised.
The situation is quite desperate that president Bola Tinubu declared emergency on food security, but how convinced can the government be in the willingness to adopt this technology to optimise agriculture in Nigeria.
Genome editing comprises a group of technologies that give scientists the ability to change an organism’s DNA. These technologies allow addition, removal, alteration of genetic material at particular locations in the genome.
Agricultural Biotechnologists and other experts speak favorably about the efficacy of the technology when applied in agriculture, attesting to its ability to revitalise productivity by developing crops and livestock with high nutritional qualities.
The official publication of Direct Research Journal of Agriculture, 2022, stated that in most places of Africa, population growth and food security have an inverse connection.
It showed that despite Africa’s rapid population increase, particularly in Nigeria, the continent remains afflicted by hunger and food insecurity.
The publication showed that between 2018 and 2020, 21.4 per cent of Nigeria’s population was hungry on average, while those suffering from extreme food insecurity going for days without eating due to lack of money or resources.
“The growing population strains available resources and raises food consumption. Rising demand exacerbates inflation, worsening people’s living conditions.
“As the population grows, so will the demand for food. An increase in demand that is not balanced by an increase in production will demand exceeding supply, resulting in food insecurity,’’ the publication stated.
Apart from economic downturns and conflict, it is believed that climate change is also a key driver of food insecurity and genome editing is said to be a climate smart technology.
According to the United Nations, food insecurity is the lack of consistent access to food, which diminishes dietary quality, disrupts normal eating patterns, and can have negative consequences for nutrition, health and wellbeing.
Recently, president Tinubu launched a national agricultural extension policy document targeted at driving increased food production and development in the agricultural sector.
However, in the bid to boost food production, the government would do well to also consider leveraging through adoption, the CoE-STI genome editing initiative.
In December 2022, in collaboration with the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), the CoE-STI hosted a six-day writing workshop and policy dialogue on genome editing technology to boost agricultural productivity.
Dr Adeleke Mamora, former Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, who was represented by the minister of state, Chief Henry Ikoh, stated that Africa was positioned to benefit from the technology of genome editing.
He said it was the responsibility of responsive governments to strengthen capacities to keep up with the dynamism of the technology.
Prof. Olalekan Akinbo, Supervisor at the CoE-STI told newsmen at the workshop that the idea behind the initiative was to increase crop productivity and economic growth on the African continent.
He explained that agriculture would play a crucial role for the Agenda 2063 to be achieved, adding that one of the pillars of the agenda was zero hunger, that no one would go to bed hungry.
In July 2023, the CoE-STI of AUDA-NEPAD with NABDA, convened another workshop to review and validate genome editing communication strategy for Nigeria.
At that workshop, Prof. Abdullahi Mustapha, Director General of the NABDA, said the workshop was to propagate the technology and its implications for solving challenges in different sectors in Nigeria with agriculture as focus.
Speaking to newsmen on the level of acceptance of the technology in Africa, Akinbo disclosed that Burkina Faso, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Eswantini and Ethiopia all had policies that showed positivity.
The Supervisor at the CoE-STI said government of these countries saw and acknowledged the potentials of the innovative technology of genome editing as there were top-notched policy engagements with these African nations, including Nigeria.
“We believe that innovation leads to a prosperous nation, hence it is paramount that policy makers should be able to identify and acknowledge the benefits of innovation in order to show commitment.
“The mandate of the Centre of Excellence is to drive the implementation of Agenda 2063 which has the slogan `The Africa we want.’ Africa is tired of policies without implementation,’’ Akinbo said.
On the importance of the technology and why Nigeria should take it seriously, Akinbo said that expertise was very high in Nigeria, also the enabling environment created by the government was important.
He said why Nigeria should be very involved and adopt this technology was due to the expanding population of over 200 million people, also as an agrarian nation.
He advised that Nigeria should take advantage and opportunities offered by agriculture to grow its GDP instead of over dependence on the oil sector.
Accordingly, he noted that the capacity to utilize the fertile neutral resources without using too much fertilizer, would lead to high yield.
“This is where and how genome editing technology becomes very important, and when you turn all these natural resources into productivity, you will get increase which leads to increase in the per capita income,’’ he said.
Similarly, Dr Shakirat Ajenifujah -Solebo, acting Director, Genetics, Genomics and Bioinformatics Department of the NABDA and Facilitator of the CoE-STI genome editing initiative, said Nigeria needed the technology.
“The efforts that we are putting in is because it is important that Nigeria does not miss out of this technology.
“We have started well and this workshop is to crown our efforts in ensuring that we are able to adopt and adapt this technology at all levels.
“If we are successful, it is going to have an impact on the development in Nigeria, especially when it comes to food security because this technology is precise,’’ Solebo said.
She further said that genome editing would improve crop productivity by enhancing the characteristics and traits that were giving farmers problems with the crop.
She expressed optimism that the successful domestication of the technology in Nigeria would translate to enhanced agricultural productivity.
In November 2023, the CoE-STI of the AUDA NEPAD held the first series of its virtual regional engagement: Genome Editing to Optimise Agriculture in Africa, which was to enhance genome editing product development in agriculture.
The meeting which was moderated by Prof. Olalekan Akinbo, Supervisor at the CoE-STI, served as a platform for uniting diverse stakeholders, fostering collaborative learning, and advancing genome editing in agriculture.
During the technical and practical considerations, a participant, Prof. Charles Adetunji, Director of Research and Innovation, Edo State University, highlighted the successful role genome editing played in effective management of pests and diseases.
Adetunji drew attention to the pressing issue of feeding Africa’s burgeoning population, standing at 1.2 billion, and proposed genome editing as a viable solution to this crisis.
He also enumerated over twenty benefits associated with the technology which comprised cost-effectiveness, precision breeding, minimised off-target mutations, expedited breeding programs, and enhanced resistance to pests and diseases, among others.
Prof. Steve Runo of Kenyatta University, expanded on the broader spectrum of genome editing products currently under development, encompassing maize, sorghum, teff, and rice.
In addressing the overarching landscape of genome editing, he underscored the critical necessity of harmonising legislation and guidelines.
He also advocated for leveraging regional blocs to facilitate the harmonization of guidelines and legislation, thereby streamlining the genome editing process across diverse African nations.
In the key takeaways from the presentations and questions responses, the need for supportive legislation was stressed to further advance genome editing initiatives.
The critical role of policies, training, and infrastructure in realising the full potential of genome editing in agriculture on the African continent was also mentioned among others.
In December 2023, again, the AUDA- NEPAD CoE-STI in collaboration with the NABDA, via a two-day workshop, promoted the inclusion of genome editing into Nigerian University Curriculum.
The workshop was organsised to strengthen institutional capacity in genome editing and biotechnology through strategic alliances with Nigerian Universities and agricultural research institutions.
Prof. Mustapha, NABDA director general, said the workshop marked a pivotal moment in the collective efforts to propel Nigeria’s agricultural sector towards sustainable development.
He said genome editing and biotechnology were at the forefront of scientific advancements, offering unprecedented opportunities to revolutionalise agriculture.
Prof. Akinbo, Supervisor at the CoE-STI, noted that having genome editing as a course of study would greatly impact students to have first hand scientific knowledge, equipping them practically to become gainfully employed.
He argued that rather than learning on the job, it was pertinent that students be trained to stimulate their interest in understanding how relevant the course was in a smart evolving environment.
Akinbo maintained that sustaining an important, emerging technology such as genome editing required an enhanced knowledge base.
Dr. Shakirat Ajenifujah-Solebo, NABDA’s focal person for the CoE-STI genome editing initiative, said the technology would speed up the rate at which products come out from research and teaching.
According to her, research presently seem to be running faster than the education whereas in other climes, the technology was already being practiced and bringing out products.
Prof. Lawal Bilbis, Vice Chancellor, Uthman Dan Fodio University, Sokoto spoke about the benefits and positive impacts of the technology and the need to introduce it into the curriculum of Nigerian universities.
Prof. Julian Osuji, Director, Regional Centre for Biotechnology and Bioresources Research, spoke about the benefits of having genome science as a course in Nigerian universities.
Osuji said: “But for the desired results to be achieved, government should be prepared to equip the programmes.
“Government should be ready to provide the equipment because having it done theoretically without practical knowledge would make it redundant.’’
Indeed, the AUDA-NEPAD CoE-STI genome editing initiative carried out in partnership with the NABDA in Nigeria is laudable considering the efforts of the present administration to make Nigeria food secure.
The government of president Bola Tinubu should also consider adopting this initiative and implementing it as a working policy in the strive to make agriculture sustainable.