The recent havoc caused by tropical cyclone Idai which struck the southern African countries of Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Malawi is a grim reminder that Africa remains the most vulnerable continent as far as climate change mitigation is concerned.
A new survey released by Afrobarometer paints a bleak picture of how agriculture …
Effective science and communication collaborations are critical to ensure gene editing technology does not suffer from the “perception problem” now facing genetically modified organisms (GMOs), a plant pathologist warned.
“I want to feed the world sustainably. That’s what motivates me as a scientist,” said Jim Bradeen, head of the Department of …
At fresh produce markets across Kenya, citizens are shunning buying bigger tomatoes, mangoes, pawpaws or oranges for fear that they may be genetically modified.
The fear is extended to even poultry products where chickens that are too big are classified as genetically modified organisms by consumers and shunned therefore.
The misconception is …
B4FA Fellow Christopher Bendana reports:
Ugandan agricultural scientists have begun engaging directly with farmers in a bid to encourage greater adoption of innovative farming practices.
Scientists are now a common sight at national farmers’ exhibitions and have begun training farmers through workshops at various national research institutes. Other scientists have enlisted children …
Why do we turn on our radios? For music, entertainment and maybe for news, if we’re feeling virtuous. Hardly anyone in the United States would say they turn on their radios for the advertisements. But if you’re a farmer in Eastern or Western Africa, a radio advertisement could be the …
Esther Ngumbi, postdoctoral researcher at University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign Entomology Department and a Food Security Fellow with Aspen Institute’s New Voices Fellowship, writes:
Scientific discoveries that can improve people’s lives and change the world should be communicated widely with the public, but too often that valuable knowledge is locked …
Communication is critical around the topic of gene-editing, an emerging technology that involves making precise changes in the genetic material of plants and animals used in food production to improve food safety, reduce food waste and use less water, land and other resources.
“Consumers are going to ask, ‘Is this safe?’ …
The service, whose Scottish co-founder Kenny Ewan describes it as “the internet for people with no internet”, is free to use and only requires a mobile phone.
Read …
African countries are currently having trouble releasing their biotech crops popularly known as Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) to farmers, but scientists seem to be embracing a new strategy to ensure that there exist relevant regulatory systems.
On July 18, the biosafety agencies and partners across the continent gathered in Entebbe, Uganda, …
Biosafety regulators from various African countries have embraced and appreciated the importance of biosafety communication in creating public trust with the regulatory process of GMOs. This was during the Agri-biotechnology and Biosafety Communication (ABBC) 2017 Africa Symposium held in Entebbe, Uganda July 18-20, 2017. It attracted over 120 participants from …