Publications

Debunking the myths of GM crops for Africa: The case of Bt maize in Kenya

Assessing the potential impact of Bt maize in Kenya using a GIS based model

An Outstanding Partnership (September 2002) (296 KB)

IRMA Updates (Quarterly Newsletter)

Insect Resistant Maize for Africa:
Project Seeds to Eliminate Production Losses of US$90 Million

Maize is a major food crop in Africa, especially in the eastern and southern regions of the continent. For many, it is the main dietary staple, as evidenced by annual consumption levels of 79 kg per capita in the region and 125 kg per capita in Kenya. Threats to this food source endanger food security, and stem borers pose just such a threat in much of Africa. In Kenya alone, farmers report losing 15% of their maize harvest to stem borers, equivalent to 400,000 t of maize valued at US$ 90 million. Farmers in some areas have reported losses as high as 45%.

These losses are considerable in a country where maize must be imported to meet domestic demand. For individual farmers, many of whom live on less than US$ 1 per day, this destruction is significant. Insect pest infestations can decimate entire fields of maize and deprive families of a vital source of food and income.

To tackle this problem, the Insect Resistant Maize for Africa (IRMA) project was launched in 1999 by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI), with financial support from the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture.

The project is aimed at producing maize that is adapted to various Kenyan agroecological zones and is also resistant to key insect pests, primarily stem borers. Both conventional and biotechnology-based sources of resistance will be examined for their effectiveness against the borers. The project emphasizes public involvement and awareness through events such as the Stakeholders Meeting, described later. Furthermore, major project objectives include environmental and socioeconomic impact studies, resistance management strategies, and project documentation. Based on the experiences and results generated in Kenya, appropriate technologies and varieties will be extended to other African nations.

Objectives of the IRMA Project

The general objectives are to:

• develop insect resistant maize varieties for the major Kenyan production systems and insect pests;

• establish procedures to provide insect resistant maize to resource- poor farmers in Kenya;

• assess the impact of insect resistant maize varieties in Kenyan agricultural systems;

• transfer technologies to and Kenya to develop, evaluate, disseminate, and monitor insect resistant maize varieties; and

• plan, monitor, and document project processes and achievements for dissemination to other developing countries.

Project Activities

The project engages in three groups of activities:

1) development of insect resistant maize,

2) development of effective dissemination strategies, and

3) impacts assessment.

Development of insect resistant maize will entail:

• development of infrastructure in Kenya to screen maize plants for insect resistance;

• identification of genes that are active against Kenyan stem borers;

• identification of target maize germplasm for transformation and for backcrossing to source germplasm;

• development of transgenic-based insect resistant maize germplasm;

• backcrossing of maize adapted to Kenya with transformed germplasm; and

• development of high-yielding, improved, and adapted insect resistant maize germplasm.

Development of effective dissemination strategies for insect resistant maize in Kenya will entail:

• development of insect resistance management (IRM) strategies;

• acquisition of the required licenses and agreements to enable the technology to be used in farmers’ fields;

• full application of biosafety and bioethical standards and protocols;

• agronomic studies of insect resistant maize; and

• dissemination of insect resistant maize to farmers.

Impact assessment and socioeconomic analysis will entail:

• assessment of the demand for insect resistant maize varieties through studies of the different maize-based farming systems, a survey of farmers’ perceptions and preferences, and a survey of consumers’ preferences;

• assurance that the technology fits within the country’s institutional framework and an assessment of the implications and costs of intellectual property rights (IPR);

• assurance of the safety of the technology to the public through continuous dialogue with environmental groups, local research institutes, and private or public companies involved with seed production;

• assurance that the technology is acceptable to farmers (through farmer participatory research);

• comparisons of the costs of the new technology to its benefits at various levels, including the maize producer, the seed company, the consumer, and society as a whole; and

• impact assessment and cost-benefit analyses of the research.

Expected Outputs

Expected outputs of the project include:

• maize inbreds, hybrids, and open-pollinated varieties that combine conventional and biotechnology-based insect resistance;

• protocols developed and KARI scientists trained in the development, evaluation, dissemination, and monitoring of insect resistant maize;

• economic analyses to determine farm-level profitability, farmers’ willingness to pay for the technology, and the overall private and public benefits of the technology;

• insect resistance management strategies;

• practical experience for KARI staff in biosafety and intellectual property rights procedures in Kenya; and

• documentation of experiences on development, dissemination, and impacts of gene-based resistant maize germplasm.

The IRMA project convened a Stakeholders Meeting in Nairobi, Kenya, in March 2000. Approximately 100 people representing different stakeholder groups—including farmers’ associations, women’s groups, religious organizations, seed producers, regulatory agencies, NGOs, the media, and others—were in attendance. Representatives of CIMMYT, KARI, and the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture attended.

The Stakeholders Meeting introduced the IRMA project to stakeholders; created awareness of the economic importance of stem borers in Kenyan agriculture; created awareness of the control options for stem borers, including conventional and novel approaches like the Bt-gene technology; and solicited responses from stakeholders on the need for insect resistant maize in Kenya and the process that will be used to develop such maize.

The session was chaired by the Permanent Deputy Secretary and Director of Agriculture Wilfred Mwangi, currently on leave from CIMMYT’s Economics Program, and was officially opened by the Minister of Agriculture, the Hon. Christopher M. Obure. Cyrus Ndiritu, Director of KARI and an outspoken proponent for biotechnology and genetic engineering for developing countries, provided some general remarks on the project, while CIMMYT-IRMA project coordinator Stephen Mugo gave a more detailed account. A letter on CIMMYT’s role in the project from Director General Timothy Reeves was read by David Hoisington, Director of CIMMYT’s Applied Biotechnology Center, and Klaus Leisinger, Executive Director of the Novartis Foundation, gave a short speech on the Foundation’s role in the project.

Following the opening, the stakeholders readily engaged the expert panel in the question-and-answer period. Because of the stakeholders’ intense involvement, the session ran well over its allotted time and was extended. Importantly, Bt maize was viewed as having high potential for closing the wide and increasing food deficit in Kenya. The stakeholders expressed the need to incorporate sound management strategies and to follow the national regulations strictly during introduction and testing of Bt genes, but nearly all present agreed that this technology must be evaluated in-country. Media coverage of both the Stakeholders Meeting and the preceding Africa Biotechnology Stakeholders Forum workshop (sponsored by CIMMYT and the Rockefeller Foundation) was extensive and generally positive.

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July, 2005