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"id": 243116,
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"speaker_name": "Mr. Weya",
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"legal_name": "Sammy Arthur Weya",
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"content": "Thank you Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, for giving me this opportunity to say a few things with regard to introduction of biotechnology in Kenya. Technology is the key to development in any country. I have had an opportunity to travel to the United States of America (USA), where biotechnology products are produced. I saw that it does not stop farmers from planting traditional crops. They can still plant their traditional crops. In some shops in the USA, you will find a notice indicating that they sell only organic food, while other shops sell biotechnology products. What is biotechnology? It is technology by use of which you do plant breeding. It can also be used in animal breeding. What we should advocate for is better use of this technology. We can get drought-resistant crops, or crops that yield fast, if we use bio- technology. We can have mixed-breed cattle that can withstand harsh conditions in different parts of this country such as North Eastern Province. There is research being conducted to produce fish that is fast-growing and high-yielding. For instance, it will be possible to take a fish from Sagana breeding ponds and cross breed it with fish from Uganda. In this way, we will be able to produce fish that matures quickly, so that our people can be self-sufficient in food production. I also got an opportunity to go to South Africa. The South African Government spends up to $70 million in bio-technology research. This is a huge sum of money for our country. We cannot raise that kind of money, because we need it in other sectors of our economy. Most hon. Members in this House wear clothes made from bio-technology cotton. I have eaten bio-technology food in other countries, but I am still healthy. So, I do not think eating bio-technology food, or wearing bio- technology clothes, will affect us. Kenya and South Africa are within the same continent. So, if our neighbouring countries have introduced this kind of technology, we should borrow a leaf from them to understand how July 12, 2006 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES 2001 they have done so. We have resources to invest in this technology. About 70 per cent of the products that are produced in South Africa are exported to other parts of Africa. However, as from next year, the South African Government will not export genetically modified grains, because it wants to use its maize to produce bio-diesel. This will enable it to reduce the cost of fuel. In turn, this will reduce the cost of production in different sectors of their economy. In most African countries, fuel is the most expensive development component. South Africa has also put in place measures to help its farmers. It buys seeds for farmers and gives them other farm inputs such as chemicals to enhance production of bio-technology cotton. Farmers spray their farms with chemicals, which do not negatively affect their cotton. They have established demonstration farms for both organic methods and other modern methods to enable farmers see the difference between the two methods of production. South Africa produces a lot of cotton. Kenya will lag behind in technology if we continue using traditional methods in farming. As a country, we should adopt modern methods of farming. It was a huge problem when our society was accepting the idea of using computers. People thought it was a monster that would drive people out of jobs. We now realise that the computer sector is one of the biggest job creators in the world. We have many people employed in the Information Communication Technology (ICT) sector. Today, I think there is no one who is not using computers. Even mobile technology is part of the computer technology. A country like the USA produces a lot of bio-technology products. But NGOs that are fighting introduction of biotechnology in Africa come from the USA or Europe. They are opposing our initiative to use methods that they themselves are using. This is because they want Africans to remain poor. I am saying this because 20 years ago in the USA, they used DDT to eradicate malaria. Today, international companies from USA are supplying us with malaria medicines, so that we continue falling sick. Getting rid of malaria is now a big problem, yet the USA used DDT to get rid of malaria. It is now using biotechnology to feed its people and get surplus produce. We need to ask ourselves why it sends NGOs to come to Third World countries to stop us from using what it is using. Is this because it wants us to remain poor and not to advance? We must be clear about the intentions of some of the Western NGOs' involvement in our developmental and environmental issues. They are creating irrigation projects in their countries but tell us not to use irrigation in our farming. In my constituency we have this Dominion firm that is opposed by NGOs. They say that it is not good for the environment. Most NGOs have been in this country for many years, but have not done anything that benefits our people. Why should they not implement projects that will eradicate poverty from our country? Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, we need policies to guide us on how we can introduce biotechnology in this country. I am very clear about that. I think banning biotechnology will be shooting ourselves in the foot. We need a policy on how to introduce and use biotechnology. We should borrow a leaf from South Africa. We can learn from how South Africans have advanced in the use of this technology. We can also learn from the problems they have had in implementing this technology. We will need huge resources, because we will need to establish bio-safety departments in our Ministries. So, there is a cost implication in the introduction of this technology. But I do not think that this country has a problem with that. We need to keep up with technology. Let us not block technology from coming into our country because NGOs have told us not make use of it. As legislators, let us open our minds. Let us sit with our scientists and ask them what they think about biotechnology. I do not think our scientists, like those in the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), will allow us to produce food that will endanger the lives of our people. I know we talk about MONSANTO and other big multinationals, which oppose introduction of 2002 PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES July 12, 2006 biotechnology in our country. But they are in business. We want our scientists to be empowered, so that we can produce our own variety of biotechnology. I am not saying that we should import foreign technology. I am saying that we should have our locally generated biotechnology. We are not saying that we should import their technology. It is possible for us to have our own localised biotechnology. In fact, biotechnology is just like all these other technologies that have come up. For example, people are now talking against the test tube baby technology because they only know of the traditional method of conception, and yet there are some women who cannot conceive through the conventional method. So, what we are supposed to do is to seek the help of scientists and doctors who can enable the women who have been branded barren to conceive and give birth. Is there a problem with such a technology? Today, the concept of surrogate mothers is quite alive. If a woman is not able to give birth, it is possible to transplant sperms and ova into another woman who will now conceive and give birth on her behalf. These are technologies that exist all over the world and we cannot block our minds from what is happening around us. Mr. Deputy Speaker, Sir, if you want to grow organic crops, continue doing so because no one will stop you. If, also, you want to go the biotechnology way, do so. This is because our people are starving. Even if their intestines are going to grow big because of using genetically modified foods, that is not an issue. We cannot start talking of matters to do with low sugar levels or low level of body fats. Our people need that sugar and those fats. This idea of coming up with products and telling people that the products are low in cholesterol and so on will not help. Our people need that cholesterol because they are dying of hunger. Their bodies require those fats, sugars and cholesterol. When you attain high levels of development, then you can reduce the consumption of fats, sugars and cholesterol because you will already be having them in excess. We need to make it clear that we do not need to follow methods used by Americans or Europeans because they already have too much for themselves. For example, the minimum wage in most of these countries is an equivalent of between Kshs15,000 and Kshs20,000. In South Africa, the lowest salary you can earn is Kshs10,000 while here in Kenya there are people who earn Kshs1,000 per month. As leaders, we need to work with scientists and people who can give us the right policy framework. Let us borrow ideas from other countries that already have this kind of technology. If we do that, we shall be able to share ideas and eventually find out what the problem is. Mr. Temporary Deputy Speaker, Sir, I would like to inform my colleagues that plant breeding does not affect the soil. Breeding involves operating on cell factors be it on animals, plants or fish. All it involves is changing cells in order to get attributes such as resistance to drought, faster growth---"
}