Scholars believe that biotechnology is the next internationally competing development outcome between countries. It would be a symbol of the development extent of countries as the technology by itself if modifiable to the most advanced system through time. In 1953, Cambridge University scientists known as James Watson and Francis Crick discovered that the science of gene testing methodology (DNA).
Since then, the research that started with traditional microbial fermentation reached today at a stage of synthetic biology and Nano biotechnology by using Genetically Modified Organism (GMO), an integrated and sequential biological modification supported by digital technology, according to Dr. Endale Gebre, a Biotechnology expert at the Ethiopian Policy Institute. Biotechnology is critical for the development of health, agriculture, environment and industry among others. [In each five years, Ethiopia spends about more than 1.5 billion Birr to import enzymes] However, if the country works strongly in the area, it could produce the enzymes at home, he said.
Today the country has finalized genome sequencing of over 3000 bio diversity species. However, there is still shortage of sequencing machines and there is low finance to develop the area. Contrary, other countries spend more finance to this technology for giving the needed attention to the industry.
Mentioning China’s experience, Dr. Endale said, “A single genome institute known as Beijing Genome Institute has 128 sequencing machines and it gets 1.5 billion USD finance for research it undertakes within five years. But, Ethiopia is backward in this regard and has few machines.” A GMO research takes more than a decade. But, if the nation strongly work on it and if the government has strong commitment for the development of biotechnology, it would pay back in terms of increasing agricultural productivity both in quality and quantity as it helps to provide duplicated, selected seeds and species that are productive and disease resistant animal and plants.
This would also help to keep the intellectual property of species in fingerprinting technology. For example, if Ethiopia was able to modify teff gene at home, it wouldn’t have passed through up and downs, he underlined. The world has been benefiting from biotechnology in various sectors including health, agriculture and industry. Since 2011, the developing countries are also joined the competition. They have become productive in the agricultural sector. Brazil, S. Africa and Egypt can be exemplary in this regard. Though Africa has been inspiring at the beginning, it is still late compared to the world due to lack of knowledge, political will, legal framework, finance and low public awareness among others.
Ethiopia has been implementing biotechnology products like BT cotton seed. It can also adopt additional GMO seeds including enset, maize and potato. Therefore, biotechnology can answer questions that the conventional researches fail to respond. “Likewise, we need to be linked with the developed world as the main technologies are there. For example, Brazil has a biotechnology virtual lab in Germany. So, we need to apply the same to experiment there and sent the result back.” Traditionally, Ethiopians have been implementing biotechnology for a long period of time. Traditional food and alcohol preparation and animal breeding are good examples to this end. However, the sector has not developed in Ethiopia compared to its age. It was introduced in Ethiopia in 1964 in terms of vaccination. Today 13 universities of the country teach biotechnology course. As a country that has a wide biodiversity, Ethiopia ought to give adequate attention to biotechnology. By using the technology, the country can save the lives of various species and find the way they can be modified to resist diseases and other environmental impacts, according to Dr. Tadesse Daba, Agricultural Biotechnology Director at the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research.
He said that the world needs 50 to 70 percent increment in food production. In this regard, biotechnology has a big share to achieve this goal in bringing productive species of animals and plants. Biotech crops help farmers to overcome poverty and malnutrition, he added. Today 70 percent of USA’s industrially processed products passed through the GMO process and they possibly gave more choices to customers. And the high quality dairy animals are also the output of the technology. But, it needs careful strategy to use the biotech product.
That’s why international organizations like FAO conduct their own study on every commercialized biotech products. Today, the country has established institutions that are working to advance agriculture with plant, microbial and animal biotechnologies. It has established somehow advanced a biotechnology center at Holleta, Oromia State, Dr. Tadesse said. In terms of microbial biotechnology, the nation is endeavoring to producing microbes or enzymes that would help in processing food and bio fertilizer.
There is also embryo transfer, estrus synchronization and artificial insemination among others in animal biotechnology.
“Today we have a cow that gave a birth to seven calves by using embryo transfer. There are also animals found resisting some diseases. Some better results are also found in the plants like banana, potato, sweet potato, enset, ginger, cassava, sugarcane bamboo, pineapple and apple by using tissue culture biotechnology. Therefore, there are various results despite some shortcomings.”
The major problem to less biotechnology improvement in Ethiopia is mainly absence of legal framework that directs how the technology can be adopted. For the past two decades, the country had not been endorsed basic frameworks about the implementation of biotechnology. However, currently the biotechnology policy is drafted and has been sent to the Council of Ministers, said Dr. Kassahun Tesfaye Director General of Ethiopian Biotechnology Institute. As to him, the policy has eight basic directives including research and technological adaptation, capacity building and identifying responsibilities and strategies among others. On the other hand, population increment, agricultural setbacks and the constraining factors in the effort to bring transition from agriculture to industry compels the nation to install biotechnology.
The developed world has been benefited a lot from the technology and they have been implementing it widely. They also generate billions of dollars from the aforementioned sectors outputs. For instance, USA has about 11,367 organizations that work on biotechnology.
That’s why the country leads the world in agriculture, health and industry, he noted. GMO was commercialized in 1996 for the first time. USA, China, Brazil and Argentina are the leading nations benefiting from commercialized GMO products. In 2012, some 170 million hectare in the world has covered by commercialized GMO crops.
Accordingly, soybean, cotton and maize have been the leading commercialized crops. Currently, the main shortcomings to apply GMO in the country are lack of trained manpower, uncoordinated efforts, low market access and infrastructure among others, he stated. And the new draft policy sets the way the shortcomings are possibly curbed, according to Dr. Kassahun. Likewise, low public awareness is a big challenge in the area which affects the industry to get the needed attention and support.
Adugnaw Admass, a biotechnology expert at the Ethiopian Environment and Forest Research Center has conducted a research on the sector professionals from various selected bureaus including education, agriculture, trade and industry and environment protection in various states and the two city administrations.
Accordingly, the collected data from 405 participants indicated that 18.8 percent of them have never been heard about GMO. The rest 64.9 and 11.2 percent respectively responded sometimes and repeatedly heard about GMO. Similarly, 33.3, 33.8 and 33.9 percent respectively are supporters, rejecters and neutrals on GMO product consumption. Moreover, 50.6 percent revealed their concern about the impact of GMO on the environment and the society. In his recommendation, Adugnaw underlined the need to upgrade the public awareness on GMO and its product.
GMO food should be also labeled in supermarkets for the preference of the consumer, he capitalized. This in response would help the nation to profoundly apply GMO and benefit from it. Generally, the country needs to take cautious but strong measures to develop biotechnology so that it would be benefitted from the results.
As the scholars said the technology would help the nation to have sufficient and quality products in various sectors. Moreover, it would help to improve health, forex and technology. However, to achieve this raising the public awareness, giving the needed attention and support should be the responsibility of each
Herald February 26/2019
BY YOHANES JEMANEH
