Nigerians may be unaware, but genetically modified (GM) tilapia are on the way to the country as a gift and should arrive in May 2022. According to reports, the GM tilapia is to be introduced following “an inclusive legal agreement” between WorldFish and Premium Aquaculture Limited through a programme on genetically improved farmed Tilapia (GIFT).[i]According to a report from the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, “This agreement will augur the establishment of a GIFT-based aquaculture industry in Nigeria. Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) are collaborating with WorldFish and PAL on this endeavour with the aim of having WorldFish/PAL GIFT tilapia in Nigerian fish markets by late 2023.”
The genes engineered in the tilapia could have come from a variety of organisms, including other fish, coral, mice, bacteria, or even humans. They are basically engineered to suit industrial aquaculture models with little or no regard for possible ecological, environmental and health concerns.
FishNet Alliance, a network of fishers in several African countries, is concerned that apart from the environmental and health challenges, it is unclear whether the National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA) has a hand in this transaction.
“GM Tilapia will not tackle the root cause of challenges in the fisheries sector in Nigeria. Neither will it solve the hunger and malnutrition in Nigeria,” stated Stephen Oduware, coordinator of the FishNet Alliance. “The problems affecting the Nigerian fisheries sector namely: pollution due to oil and gas and other minerals exploration and exploitation; insecurity and piracy; illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing activities of national and international trawlers – leading to overfishing of both target and non-target species of fish; destruction of the mangrove forests amongst other issues – are matters that government should focus attention on.”
Fish farming in Nigeria is done mostly close to the river or in the creeks and there are fears that there could be interactions between the modified fish and the wild. If this happens, research has shown that releasing as little as sixty GM fish into a wild population of 60,000 would lead to the extinction of the wild population in less than 40 fish generations[ii].
A new study has found genetically engineered (genetically modified or GM) zebrafish (Danio rerio) have escaped from fish farms in Brazil and are multiplying in creeks in Brazil[iii].
The researchers say that their results “confirm that escapes from aquaculture facilities are common, and could bring severe consequences to local fish populations including endemic, rare, and threatened species.” They conclude that the production of non-native species should be avoided and transgenic fish should be banned.[iv]
“The escape of GM fish from Brazil should be a big wake-up call for our Nigerian Regulators and Government. ‘says Mariann Bassey – Orovwuje, Coordinator Food Sovereignty Program Friends of the Earth Nigeria and Africa and Chair of the Land Working Group Alliance for Food Sovereignty in Africa (AFSA). One of the chapters of her large Network and organisation Friends of the Earth US, in 2020, released an updated list of 80 grocery retailers, seafood companies, food service companies and restaurants with more than 18,000 locations nationwide that have stated that they will not sell genetically engineered salmon, demonstrating a widespread market rejection of the first commercial offerings of the first genetically engineered animal approved for human consumption in the U.S. Nigerians Caveat Emptor – Buyers Beware!
“Genetically engineered salmon pose unacceptable risks to wild salmon and broader ecosystems. People across the country have made it clear that they don’t want to eat genetically engineered salmon, and food retailers are clearly listening,” said Dana Perls, food and technology program manager at Friends of the Earth. “We thank these forward-thinking retailers for their leadership.”
Groups such as HOMEF and ERA/ FoEN, GM Free Nigeria have consistently called out the Nigerian Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA) for being too quick to approve genetically engineered organisms that have local , regional and international implications and contamination risks. They have also called for increased transparency, accountability and public engagement before considering approving these new life forms into our environment and biodiversity.
A growing body of science suggests that GE salmon may pose serious environmental risks including potentially irreversible damage to wild salmon populations. More research is needed on the potential health risks of this novel food.[v] It has being sufficiently proved that once genetically modified organisms (GMOs) are released into our environment, it is impossible to control or recall or contain them.. Human error, biology, pollinator and wind movement, extreme weather events, and other factors make GM contamination predictable. The ‘creators’ of these products cannot control or contain their ‘creation’ or the creatures they have released into our environment and biodiversity, the group warned.
Section 22 of the NBMA Act requires that no person, institution, or body who wishes to import, export, and transit or otherwise carry out a contained field trial, multi-locational trial, or commercial release of a genetically modified organism shall do so without the approval or permit of the Agency. Section 23 and 24 provides that such person, institution, or body shall apply to the Director General of the Agency not less than 270 days to the date of import, export, transit, or the commencement of such activity.
It is important to state the period between April and the scheduled date (in May) of transfer is way less than 270 days. We also note that up till the time of this press release, the Agency had not published anything regarding the said GIFT, especially copies of the application, if any, and the relevant information to enable the public study and make comments on it as expected and required under Section 25 of the Act.
Reacting to the news of genetically modified tilapia on the way to Nigeria, the director if Health of Mother Earth Foundation, Nnimmo Bassey, cautioned that “The Nigerian environment is already bedeviled with many genetically engineered crops and products of which consumers are not aware of. Adding genetically engineered fish to the mix is objectionable and directly threatens the nation’s biosecurity. Introducing GM tilapia to Nigeria as a measure of benevolence is both colonial and unwholesome. Pushing this risky fish to Nigerian presents the nation as hungry, beggarly, and open to be assaulted and insulted at will. Once more, Nigeria is being used as a willing gateway for contaminating Africa and thus putting Africans at risk.”
As stakeholders concerned with the wellbeing of our aquatic ecosystems we see the so-called gift of genetically modified tilapia as a direct attack on our food system, our health and on the livelihoods of millions of fisherfolks and processors. We call on our government to halt the approval of this GM Fish or any further approvals of genetically engineered animals, plants , crops or feed in Nigeria until regulation is strengthened and tightened. Public participation is mandatory and there is increase need for transparency. Above all the Precautionary Principle, which stipulates that when there is doubt, apply the brakes, must be adhered to strictly in all cases.
The right of Nigerians to be fully informed of the application to bring in this unnatural fish species, the risks involved and the plans for emergency response cannot be swept under the carpet. FishNet Alliance calls on the Nigerian government to provide resources to public fisheries and oceanography institutions for healthy management of our aquatic ecosystems and resources rather than opening the gates for exploitation from entities hiding under the guise of philanthropy.
Signed
FishNet Alliance
GMO Free Nigeria
Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF)
We the People
Kabetkache Women Development and Resource Centre
Environmental Rights Action/ Friends of the Earth Nigeria
Committee on Vital Environmental Resources (COVER)
SPEAK Nigeria
Urban Rural Environmental Defenders (U-RED)
Gender and Environmental Risk Reduction Initiative (GERI)
The Young Environmentalist Network(TYEN)
OilWatch Nigeria
Green Alliance, Nigeria (GAN)
Host Communities Network of Nigeria (HoCoN)
Africa Faith & Justice Network Nigeria (AFJN-N)
Society for Development
Center for Environmental Advocacy and Development
Policy Alert
Gender and Community Empowerment Initiative (GECOME)
Rainbowwatch Development Center
Urban-Rural Environmental Defenders (U-RED)
Foundation for the Conservation of the Earth, FOCONE
Lekeh Development Foundation (LEDEF)
Urban Alert
Elena De Light Foundation
Angel Support Foundation
Society for Women and Youths Affairs (SWAYA)
Niger Delta Development Initiative
Greenleaf Advocacy and Empowerment Center
Center for Human Rights Health Ethnic Harmony and Livelihood Development (CHHELD)
Ebonyi Coalition of CSOs
Foundation for Environmental Rights, Advocacy & Development (FENRAD)
Gender and Advocacy Justice Initiative ( GAJI )
Jelu New Breed Foundation
Okaha Women and Children Development Organization
Women Environment and Youth Development Initiative-WOYODEV
Pearls Care Initiative (PCI)
Glorious Teens Ministry (GTM)
Global Care Rescue Mission GCRM aka Operation Rescue
Adoo Health Initiative (AHI)
Grass to Amazinf Favoir Global Foundation
Women Environmental Programme (WEP)
Lion of Judah women global initiative (LOJWGINIT)
Environment and Climate Change Amelioration Initiative – ECCAI
Igede National Youth Council of Nigeria (INYCN)
Grass to Amazing Favour Foundation
Godthem City Peace Initiative
Notes
[i] WorldFish Facilitates Transfer of GIFT Tilapia to Nigeria. https://www.nipc.gov.ng/2022/04/04/worldfish-facilitates-transfer-of-gift-tilapia-to-nigeria/
[ii] William Muir et al., Possible ecological risks of transgenic organism release when transgenes affect mating success: Sexual selection and the Trojan gene hypothesis, 96 PNAS 13853-13856, at 13853 (Nov. 23, 1999).
[iii] André Lincoln Barroso Magalhães, Marcelo Fulgêncio Guedes Brito & Luiz Gustavo Martins Silva. 2022. The fluorescent introduction has begun in the southern hemisphere: presence and life-history strategies of the transgenic zebrafish Danio rerio (Cypriniformes: Danionidae) in Brazil, Studies on Neotropical Fauna and Environment. https://www. tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01650521.2021.2024
[iv]Magalhães ALB, Bezerra LAV, Daga VS, Pelicice FM, Vitule JRS, Brito MFG. 2021. Biotic differentiation in headwater creeks after the massive introduction of non-native freshwater aquarium fish in the Paraíba do Sul River basin, Brazil. Neotrop Ichthyol. 2021; 19(3):e200147. https://doi.org/10.1590/1982-0224-2020-0147
[v] Largest U.S. Retailers Reject Genetically Engineered Salmon Ahead of Potential First U.S. Sale: https://foe.org/news/us-retailers-reject-gmo-salmon/
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