The federal government has stepped up its attempts to improve the nation’s agricultural practices and increase food security by implementing genome editing technology.
Professor Abdullahi Mustapha, the director general of the National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), announced this during a two-day Genome Editing (GEd) Training Workshop for Communicators, which was organized by NABDA in association with the African Union Development Agency (AUDA-NEPAD).
The session, which concluded in Abuja on Tuesday, brought together strategic communicators from all over the nation and concentrated on the necessity of implementing and funding this technology as well as educating nearby farmers about it.
A type of genetic engineering known as “genome editing” targets particular agricultural research areas to create more productive seedlings for farmers to cultivate, perhaps reducing the time to maturity and increasing productivity.
In his final remarks, the NABDA head requested the communicators and other stakeholders to establish a connection and educate the local farmers about the benefits that the technology will offer. He also urged them to demonstrate a stronger commitment to raising public awareness of the GEd.
The Director General stated that “Genome Editing Technology will help in this regard and Nigeria needs to produce more food to feed its growing population,” on behalf of NABDA Director of Genetics, Genomics, and Bioinformatics Department Dr. Shakirat Solebo.
Given that Nigeria is the largest black nation on earth, she stated, “there is no way to overstate the importance of food security.”
The NABDA has been actively promoting the continental agenda of the Genome Editing (GEd) Communication and Advocacy Initiative, in collaboration with the Centre of Excellence in Science, Technology, and Innovation (CoE-STI), AUDA NEPAD, in recognition of the enormous potential that GEd holds for addressing complex challenges across various sectors, including agriculture.
In her concluding remarks, Florence Nazare of AUDA-NEPAD, a South African organization, urged the stakeholders to intensify their commitment to advocating for technology so that it can spread throughout the continent. She also mentioned that this will increase agricultural productivity in order to meet the increasing demands of the populace.
In her remarks on Monday, Dr. Agnes Asagbra, the director general of the National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA), stated that her organization acknowledged the significance of genome editing and that’s why it released recommendations aimed at promoting technology standardization.