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More than 60 farmers under the the umbrella of the Society for Bitech Farmers of Kenya (SOBIFAK) have welcomed the move by the government to lift the ban on GMOs in the country.
Addressing the media on Thursday the farmers thanked President William Ruto and the Cabinet for the lifting of the ban saying it will allow them access to climate -resilient high yielding seeds.
‘This landmark decision has herald a new dawn towards revival of Kenya’s rich agricultural fortunes, and has opened an avenue for our prosperity as farmers and nation. Kenya’s overreliance on conventional seeds has placed farming into vulnerability due to adverse effects of climate change such as drought, pests and crop diseases. Indeed, these adverities have seen a devastating slump in crop and livestock production,’ SOBIFAK Chairperson Daniel Magondu said.
Magondu asked that farmers be left out of any GMO politics and said the society distances itself from a group calling themselves Kenyan Peasant League arguing that the League doesn’t understand the plight of smallholder farmers.
“If the did, they would have been in the fore front advocating for adoption of imroved seeds,” Magondu added.
The society called on the government and other stakeholders to move with speed and adress misinformation and perceptions about GMOs.
“We note with concern that lots of lies about GMOs have been spread widely, and this may affect policy decisons and uptake of GM technology,”he further said.
They also requested the Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture to spare a slot for biotech farmers representation in the proposed Fibre Crops Authority leadership.