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Africa: Biosafety and Biosecurity, a conversation with Professor Johnson Ekpere
October 8, 2020 @ 12:00 pm - 2:00 pm
In this fourth series of our Conversations we will be discussing issues of biosafety and biosecurity in Nigeria and Africa.
Over the years, Africans have been very concerned on biosafety matters and our governments played key roles in the negotiations and preparation of the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) as well as in the formation of the African Model Law on Biosafety.
The CBD was adopted in 1992 to address serious concerns over the threats of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) on the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity. The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety which was adopted in 2000 also addresses these issues especially with regard to the value of biological diversity to indigenous and local communities. The Africa Model Law on Biosafety which was based on the Cartagena Protocol provides a distinctive template for governments in Africa to adopt in introducing national biosafety regulations to ensure that such laws and regulations are congruent to the wider and unified continental framework and uphold the independent rights of peoples to require a rigorous risk assessment of any products of GMOs before any decision regarding them is made.
Do our current biosafety laws in Nigeria and Africa follow the standard set by the African Model Law? What has been our experience with the regulation of biosafety in Nigeria? What are the implications for biosecurity in Nigeria? What implications do emerging technologies portend on our biodiversity, biosafety and biosecurity? Are our key stakeholders like farmers and consumers aware of unfolding events in the application of modern biotechnology in Nigeria? What roles do our educational systems play in promoting biosafety and biosafety?
Join us in this conversation with Professor Johnson Ekpere as we discuss these and other questions. Join us at 12noon WAT on Thursday, 8 October 2020 via Facebook or register here: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_I7XP38C3TIyO-jiVQeFB_Q and join us via Zoom.