Museveni recruits GMO critic as advisor

By Charles Kazooba

Uganda President Yoweri Museveni has absorbed into his government a renowned critic of biotechnology as his advisor on research and information. 

Morrison Rwakakamba, a popular researcher, started work in the Office of the President as a Special Presidential Assistant mid August this year. His work will contribute heavily in public policy formulation and change.

The new presidential advisor has publicly denounced the use of biotech in crop breeding, which technology he claims will distort the agriculture economics of the country in his campaign to influence debate on the Biotech and Biosafety Bill tabled before parliament.

Rwakakamba has in the past claimed that the draft law seeks to spread Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) in Uganda.

“From the basis of discourse I have been following, millions of Ugandans, and especially small holder farmers, instead expected the Hon. Minister to present a bill aimed at detecting, stopping and destroying GMOs,” he says.

“Evidence that shows GMOs will harm economic livelihoods of many small holder farmers, downgrade health of millions of citizens, increase hazards to environment, compromise indigenous, cultural and traditions of our society and   cripple strategic economic interests of Uganda is all over the place – I will delve into this in future.”

But these views were expressed before his appointment as a public servant in President Museveni’s administration. Today, he appears much more willing to listen and understand the proponents of biotechnology.

“It’s not easy for Conventional ecological agriculture to survive together with biotechnology. The co-existence should first be clearly studied. Secondly, my argument is about economics. Biotech isn’t good for our strategic objectives. The demand in the market is for organic matters,” said Mr Rwakakamba, adding, “I also want us to pass the biotech and biosafety law, but for different reasons.” 

It is possible that with time Mr Rwakakamba’s hard stance on GMOs will soften especially after engaging the President in a serious discussion on the matter. Mr Rwakakamba is yet to share his views with the President Museveni, who is a staunch advocate for science and is said to have initiated the process of establishing infrastructure for biotechnology as early as 2000.

When GM crops were first commercially released in 1996, critics argued that they would only benefit industrialized countries. In 2012 emerging economies overtook industrialized countries as the main adopters of GM crops.

According to the International Service for the Acquisition of Agri-Biotech Applications, from 1996 to 2011 transgenic crops added $98.2-billion to the value of global agricultural output, over 50 per cent of which accrued to emerging economies.

In an earlier rebuttal to government’s campaign for the enactment of a favourable biotech and biosafety law, Mr Rwakakamba argued that if all arable land was put to good use in the country the use of biotech would be irrelevant.

He said: “In spite of adjuncts of Climate change, Uganda is still feeding itself at a time when its arable land utilization is below 50 per cent. Indeed over 80 per cent of farmers are defacto conservation and organic farmers. If our conservation practices are accentuated through a reformed budget architecture that puts more money in agriculture – we can feed the region and world without engaging in any form of genetic manipulation.”  

“Importantly, all GMO crusaders ignore the core economic questions. Where will Uganda sell its GMO products? Will transformation from an Organic into a GMO economy give Uganda a competitive advantage? Available numbers illuminate a different pathway from what GMO proponents propose. For example, datasets from the International Trade Center (ITC), a United Nations outfit –show that untapped Organics market for agricultural products in Europe is $60 billion, Japan $11 billion and US $41 billion. So why would Uganda want to run away from this market?” he said.

Rwakakamba until his latest appointment was Chief Executive Officer of Agency for Transformation. He has worked at Uganda National Farmers Federation at manager policy research and advocacy. He was also chief executive officer Uganda National Chamber of Commerce and Industries before joining Twaweza, an East African region organization focusing on social change as country manager of Uganda.