THIRD ECOWAS MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON

UNCLAS ACCRA 000838 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAGR ECON GH TBIO SENV SUBJECT: THIRD ECOWAS MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON BIOTECHNOLOGY: ADOPTION OF THE 2006-2010 ACTION PLAN FOR MEETING THE CHALLENGES OF BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOSAFETY. SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. THE ECONOMIC COMMUNITY OF WEST AFRICAN STATES (ECOWAS) AND THE GOVERNMENT OF GHANA HOSTED THE THIRD ECOWAS MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE ON BIOTECHNOLOGY: ADOPTION OF THE 2006-2010 ACTION PLAN (ACTION PLAN) FOR MEETING THE CHALLENGES OF BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOSAFETY, FROM MARCH 27-30 IN ACCRA, GHANA. THE ACTION PLAN FOCUSES ON TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT, BIOSAFETY AND COMMUNICATIONS, IN ORDER TO IMPROVE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY. THE GOAL OF THE CONFERENCE WAS TO BRING TOGETHER, ALL CONCERNED GOVERNMENT PARTIES, THE ECOWAS MINISTERS OF AGRICULTURE, ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND OTHER KEY STAKEHOLDERS TO REVIEW, DISCUSS, AND ULTIMATELY ENDORSE THE ACTION PLAN. THE MAIN OUTCOME WAS A MINISTERIAL RECOMMENDATION FOR ADOPTION OF THE ACTION PLAN, INCLUDING A REGIONAL APPROACH TO BIOSAFETY. THE ACTION PLAN DID NOT INCLUDE THE RECOMMENDATION, PROPOSED AT THE TECHNICAL LEVEL, TO INCORPORATE THE WORLD BANK FUNDED WEST AFRICAN ECONOMIC AND MONETARY UNION (WAEMU) REGIONAL BIOSAFETY PROJECT. ALTHOUGH MUCH DEBATE OCCURRED ON THIS TOPIC, CONSENSUS COULD NOT BY REACHED BY PARTICIPANTS, LEAVING THIS ISSUE TO BE RESOLVED BETWEEN ECOWAS AND WAEMU IN THE NEAR FUTURE TO AVOID DUPLICATION AND INEFFICIENCIES. BACKGROUND -------------- ¶2. LIKE THE PREVIOUS BAMAKO MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE, THIS CONFERENCE WAS FOCUSED SPECIFICALLY ON AGRICULTURAL BIOTECHNOLOGY. FOLLOWING A RECOMMENDATION OF THE MINISTERS IN BAMAKO, ECOWAS DEVELOPED AN ACTION PLAN FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOSAFETY IN COUNTRIES OF THE ECOWAS. THE AIM OF THE ACCRA MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE WAS TO GAIN THE SUPPORT AND PUBLIC APPROVAL OF THE MEMBER COUNTRY MINISTERS (OR THEIR REPRESENTATIVES) IN MOVING THE ACTION PLAN FORWARD. THE ACTION PLAN FOCUSES ON TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT, BIOSAFETY AND COMMUNICATIONS, IN ORDER TO IMPROVE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTIVITY. THE PLAN WAS DEVELOPED BY THE WEST AND CENTRAL AFRICAN COUNCIL FOR AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT (CORAF/WECARD),THE TECHNICAL ARM OF ECOWAS, WITH USAID TECHNICAL AND FINANCIAL SUPPORT. AN IMPORTANT OBJECTIVE OF THE PLAN IS TO DEVELOP A REGIONAL APPROACH TO BIOSAFETY TO FACILITATE THE REGIONAL ROLL-OUT OF BIOTECHNOLOGY APPLICATIONS. THE PERMANENT INTERSTATE COMMITTEE FOR DROUGHT CONTROL IN THE SAHEL (CILSS),IN COLLABORATION WITH CORAF/WECARD AND ECOWAS, HAS COME UP WITH A REGIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR BIOSAFETY REGULATION THAT WAS ADOPTED BY THE CILSS COUNCIL OF MINISTERS IN MARCH 2006. THE CILSS BIOSAFETY INITIATIVE WAS TO BE EXPANDED THIS YEAR TO ECOWAS MEMBER COUNTRIES THAT ARE NOT CILSS MEMBERS. THE TOTAL BUDGET TO BRING THE ACTION PLAN TO COMPLETION IS ESTIMATED AT $26 MILLION. CONFERENCE EVENT -------------- ¶2. USAID PROVIDED PARTIAL FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR THE CONFERENCE AND SUPPORT FOR COMMUNICATION ACTIVITIES AND INFORMATION DISSEMINATION SURROUNDING THE CONFERENCE. THE CONFERENCE WAS WELL ATTENDED. ALL COUNTRIES SENT REPRESENTATIVES, INCLUDING A DOZEN MINISTERS OR DEPUTY MINISTERS FROM BENIN, GHANA, GUINEA-BISSAU, LIBERIA, AND NIGER. OVER 100 PARTICIPANTS FROM GOVERNMENTS, NATIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS, REGIONAL ORGANIZATIONS, NON-GOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS AND DONORS, AND REPRESENTATIVES FROM ECOWAS MEMBER STATES ATTENDED THE CONFERENCE. U.S. GOVERNMENT PARTICIPATION INCLUDED STAFF FROM STATE AND USAID WASHINGTON, USAID WEST AFRICA MISSION, AND USDA/FAS/NIGERIA. ¶3. SCIENTIFIC EXPERTS MET FOR THE FIRST TWO DAYS OF THE CONFERENCE (MARCH 27-28) TO DISCUSS THE ACTION PLAN, IDENTIFY PRIORITIES, AND FORMULATE RECOMMENDATIONS. AFTER AN OVERVIEW OF THE ACTION PLAN ON MARCH 27 THERE WERE TECHNICAL PRESENTATIONS ON BIOTECHNOLOGY PRIORITY SETTING, OPTIONS FOR A REGIONAL BIOSAFETY INITIATIVE, THE ONGOING WORLD BANK-FINANCED WAEMU WEST AFRICA REGIONAL BIOSAFETY PROGRAM, AND THE IMPACT OF BT COTTON IN WEST AFRICA. ON MARCH 29, THE EXPERT ADVISORS FINALIZED A SYNTHESIS DOCUMENT SUMMARIZING THEIR RECOMMENDATIONS WHICH WAS FORMALLY REVIEWED DURING THE MINISTERIAL SESSION ON MARCH ¶30. ¶4. USAID WEST AFRICA MISSION DIRECTOR DR. CHEEMA, ON BEHALF OF THE U.S. AMBASSADOR, PROVIDED OPENING REMARKS DURING THE OPENING CEREMONY OF THE MINISTERIAL SESSION ON THE LAST DAY OF THE CONFERENCE AND MADE STRONG CLOSING REMARKS EMPHASIZING THE NEED FOR COUNTRIES TO WORK TOGETHER TO ACHIEVE SUCCESS. THE FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION WAS THE ONLY OTHER DONOR ATTENDING. THE FOOD AND AGRICULTURE ORGANIZATION (FAO) REPRESENTATIVE, DR. KAKOLI GHOSH, ACKNOWLEDGED IN HER OPENING REMARKS THE USEFULNESS OF MODERN BIOTECHNOLOGY BUT STRESSED THAT CONVENTIONAL METHODS TO INCREASE AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION SHOULD ALSO BE MORE WIDELY PROMOTED. THE MINISTER OF FOOD AND AGRICULTURE, ERNEST A. DEBRAH, ON BEHALF OF THE PRESIDENT OF GHANA, JOHN AGYEKUM KUFUOR, THANKED USAID FOR THEIR SUPPORT FOR BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOSAFETY DEVELOPMENT AND THANKED ECOWAS FOR GIVING GHANA THE OPPORTUNITY TO HOST THIS YEARS CONFERENCE. HE URGED COUNTRIES IN THE REGION TO PUT THE NECESSARY MEASURES IN PLACE FOR THE SUSTAINABLE FUNDING OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY IN GENERAL AND BIOTECHNOLOGY IN PARTICULAR. HE FURTHER EMPHASIZED THAT COUNTRIES NEED TO COLLABORATE IN ESTABLISHING POLICIES TO ENABLE THE INTRODUCTION AND INTER-REGIONAL TRADE OF BIOTECHNOLOGY PRODUCTS. ¶5. AT THE CONFERENCE, INFORMATION WAS PROVIDED ON THE $24 MILLION WORLD BANK-FINANCED WAEMU PROJECT SUPPORTED BY THE GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT FACILITY (GEF),FRENCH GOVERNMENT, EUROPEAN COMMISSION, UNITED NATIONS ENVIRONMENT PROGRAM AND THE INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION (IDA). THIS PROGRAM IS MOSTLY GRANT FUNDS EXCEPT FOR A $5 MILLION LOAN INTENDED FOR BURKINA FASO TO START A BIOTECHNOLOGY LABORATORY AS ONE OF THE MAIN INVESTMENTS. THE PROJECT INTENDS TO DEVELOP A REGIONAL FRAMEWORK FOR BIOSAFETY IN THE COTTON-PRODUCING WAEMU COUNTRIES (BENIN, BURKINA FASO, MALI, SENEGAL AND TOGO). THE OTHER WAEMU COUNTRIES (GUINEA BISSAU, COTE DIVOIRE AND NIGER) ARE ALSO INCLUDED BUT THEIR PARTICIPATION WILL NOT BE FINANCED BY GEF. THIS PROJECT IS SLATED TO START IN JUNE 2007 AND WILL LAST FOR FOUR YEARS. OF THE FIVE COUNTRIES INVOLVED IN THE WORLD BANK WAEMU PROJECT, THREE ARE ALSO MEMBERS OF CILSS (BURKINA FASO, MALI AND SENEGAL). OUTCOMES -------------- ¶5. THE MAIN RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE CONFERENCE INCLUDED: TO ADOPT THE ACTION PLAN ON BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOSAFETY IN THE ECOWAS REGION WERE; TO CREATE A COHERENT FRAMEWORK BETWEEN THE NATIONAL AND REGIONAL BIOSAFETY REGULATIONS AND ADAPT THE NATIONAL BIOSAFETY FRAMEWORKS TO THE REGIONAL ONE; TO STRENGTHEN COMMUNICATION ON BIOSAFETY; AND TO STRENGTHEN NATIONAL BODIES IN CHARGE OF BIOSAFETY ISSUES. FURTHERMORE, IT WAS DECIDED THAT UNDER THE LEADERSHIP OF THE ECOWAS COMMISSION, THERE WILL BE A MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE INVOLVING THE MINISTERS OF AGRICULTURE, ENVIRONMENT, AND SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, EVERY TWO YEARS, AND A TECHNICAL COMMITTEE WILL BE FORMED COMPOSED OF MEMBERS OF ECOWAS, WAEMU, CILSS, NEW PARTNERSHIP FOR AFRICAS DEVELOPMENT (NEPAD),CORAF/WECARD, DEVELOPMENT PARTNERS, PRODUCERS ORGANIZATION AND THE PRIVATE SECTOR. ¶6. NO CONSENSUS WAS REACHED DURING THE MINISTERIAL SESSION ON A RECOMMENDATION THAT WAS INITIALLY PUT FORTH BY THE EXPERTS TO INCORPORATE THE WORLD BANK WAEMU BIOSAFETY REGIONAL PROJECT WITHIN THE ECOWAS ACTION PLAN. THIS ISSUE WAS DEBATED AT GREAT LENGTH DURING THE CONFERENCE BECAUSE MANY OF THE PARTICIPANTS HAD NOT BEEN AWARE OF THE WORLD BANK PROGRAM WHICH HAD BEEN DEVELOPED OUTSIDE OF THE ECOWAS ACTION PLAN AND DID NOT INVOLVE ALL THE MINISTRIES THAT HAD BEEN ASSEMBLED AT THIS CONFERENCE. DELEGATES WERE CONCERNED ABOUT INCORPORATING THE PROJECT, WHOSE DETAILS ARE LARGELY UNKNOWN TO THE PARTICIPANTS, INTO THE ECOWAS ACTION PLAN. HOWEVER, THE WAEMU PROJECT HAS THE POTENTIAL TO MAKE A SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTION TO REGIONAL EFFORTS AND THE OVERALL OBJECTIVES OF THE ECOWAS ACTION PLAN. CONCLUSION -------------- ¶7. THE MAIN IMPACT OF THE MINISTERIAL CONFERENCE HAS BEEN TO RAISE AWARENESS ABOUT BIOSAFETY AND BIOTECHNOLOGY ISSUES IN THE REGION, INCLUDING UPCOMING REGIONAL INITIATIVES, AND TO BUILD MOMENTUM AND REINVIGORATE POLITICAL WILL IN WEST AFRICA TO MOVE FORWARD ON BIOTECHNOLOGY AND BIOSAFETY LEGISLATION. THE NEXT STEP WILL BE FOR ECOWAS TO SUBMIT THE ACTION PLAN FOR APPROVAL AT THE NEXT ECOWAS CONFERENCE OF MINISTERS, PRESUMABLY IN JUNE 2007. ADDITIONAL CONSULTATIONS WILL BE NEEDED TO WORK ON THE DETAILS OF HOW THE WAEMU REGIONAL BIOSAFETY INITIATIVE FOR FIVE COUNTRIES WILL COORDINATE, COLLABORATE, AND BUILD SYNERGIES WITH THE ECOWAS REGIONAL INITIATIVE WHICH INCLUDES ALL WAEMU COUNTRIES. ECOWAS WILL ALSO INVESTIGATE LEVERAGING ADDITIONAL GEF FUNDING TO EXPAND THE WAEMU INITIATIVE TO THE REST OF THE REGION. BRIDGEWATER