The Scientific Ghana Series 1: The GM
Technology Debate Raging in Ghana
The debate over the use of
genetically modified organisms (GMO) in Ghana has been raging fiercely and I am
particularly excited about the awareness this increased media activity will create.
In this article I will attempt to put forward my take on this GMO debate in
Ghana as a way of helping the wider society to examine this critical issue in a
broader sense. I am particularly encouraged to write this piece after a
thorough discussion I had with two of my brothers on this GMO issue confronting
Ghana. They appear to have carefully followed the radio and television debate
for many weeks but that have been left with major gaps in their understanding
of GM technology. These two gentlemen are both very well educated and they are
both successful career people, but they are understandably unaware of all the
sides of the issues. GMO issues regard the following: 1 - Whether we need to
worry, 2 - The origins of this genetic technology, 3 - The purpose of it and, 4
- The impact going forward into the future. I will address these four aspects
in this article.
First of all, there is no
need to worry when it comes GM foods and their use in all forms and purposes in
Ghana. The process of genetic modifications (GM), which is the means by which
living things change their hereditary materials, occur in nature on daily
basis. This is how organisms evolve. Genetic modification in nature unlike the
man-made ones (i.e. GM technology) is mostly random and requires strong
selection to be effective. Every living being undertake this important process.
It is one of the reasons behind the different traits children possess which
appear to be beyond what they inherit from their parents. GM on the other hand
is highly selective and need driven. GM like any other technology requires
careful and sensible application for it to be completely safe. All technologies
in this world are inherently dangerous. Take any household cleaning agent and
you will have a lethal weapon in your hand. The safety lies only in the
"appropriate use".
Secondly, the origins of
modern GM are Mother Nature herself. The entire tools scientists use in devising GM organisms are all obtained from other living things. What
scientists have done is to use creativity and the drive to solve urgent
societal problems to overcome the slow pace of genetic modifications as they
occur in nature. A typical example is the development of medical insulin
required by people suffering from type 1 diabetes. The initial method of
production was from the pancreas of foetal calf. It is estimated that that the
world may need a whole continent of Africa full of cattle in order to meet the
current global demand for insulin. This is where GM technology comes in handy.
Scientists who were moved by humanity’s need for insulin have been able to
device a means by which the gene for insulin is copied from humans and
transferred into bacteria that grows easily in a broth. The dramatic change of
fortune is that, we no longer need to rear cows until maturity before getting
insulin from its fetus.
Thirdly, the purpose of every
technology is to simply improve on life. Those who have vehemently opposed the
introduction of GMOs in Ghana would have also prevented the use of jet planes
in Ghana had their permission being sought. Airplanes are accepted today
through a highly regulated industry. Anytime flaws that are discovered to endanger
life; measures are quickly taken to correct any problems that arise from time
to time. GM needs to be viewed and used the same way.
Finally, the impact of
genetic modification technology is going to be extremely powerful and
beneficial to society. We are already going a step further and design brand new
living things using existing living things as seeds. Scientists have already
designed and assembled new genetic materials from scratch. Existing living
cells have then been used to boot these genetic materials into operation to
yield a cell of unique kind. These technologies are going to change our life in
a remarkable way. The moral question is
to make it safe to ourlives. The human imagination is unstoppable. We in Ghana
must start digging now.
Patrick Kobina Arthur (PhD) || parthur14@gmail.com || http://pakar1-corner.blogspot.com/
Patrick Kobina Arthur (PhD) || parthur14@gmail.com || http://pakar1-corner.blogspot.com/
