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Monday, May 11, 2015

Execlusive: Experts canvass support for bio-safety law in Nigeria


NaijaAgroNet

Environmentalists in Nigeria are drumming support for the recently proclaimed Biosafety Act and forecasting good tidings for the nation, reports NaijaAgroNet.

This is coming as NaijaAgroNet reports President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan on April 20, 2015 signed the Biosafety Act into law.


Some of the biosafety experts who commented on this development including Director of Research (Biotechnology) at Sheda Science & Technology Complex, Abuja, Dr. Abolade Samuel Afolabi and research fellow at Biotechnology Advanced Laboratory, Sheda Science and Technology Complex, Dr. Andrew Chibuzor Iloh.


They said the Act sponsored by the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA) is a welcomed development and strive for domestication of modern biotechnology as obtained in advanced countries, a technology with capacity to boost agricultural production and economic development.


For Dr. Afolabi, the biosafety technology is already available and could translate to jobs, opportunity for the youth and wealth creation.


The National Advanced Biotechnology Laboratories, he said, could now go on full fledge research in plant, animal and human biotechnology thus building formidable home grown capacity.


“The possibility is limitless ... a win–win situation. Now let’s ‘hit the bench’ and become productive at the molecular level,” he said, stressing that Nigeria has arrived and has finally joined the enlightened group of nations with the signing of the Act.

And for Dr. Andrew Chibuzor Iloh, there is no doubt that the signing of the biosafety bill into an Act in Nigeria would bring about growth economically, socially as well as capacity building in the field of agricultural biotechnology.

“It’s important to say that it opens up the seed business in Nigeria were seed companies can comfortably strive while providing farmers with quality seeds,” Dr. Iloh said.

In terms of capacity building, Dr. Iloh pointd out that the Act opens up avenues for quality in house research for development and Nigeria would be able to train more scientists in the field. “The economic earnings will diversify at least by bringing some form of succor to the dwindling oil market,” he noted.

Remmy Nweke
... Linking agrobiz, sustainable environs, people & technology.

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