The AUDA-NEPAD’s African Biosafety Network of Expertise (ABNE), in partnership with The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI), Bejo Sheetal Biosciecnes Foundation in India, and Michigan State University (MSU) in the USA, organized a Biotechnology and Biosafety regulatory study tour to India for African regulators and decision-makers from 5 - 13 February 2023. The primary objective of this study tour was to provide a platform for hands-on experience in modern agricultural biotechnology development and its regulations. The visit also aimed to support the knowledge-based building of functional regulatory systems for biotechnology and emerging technologies like genome editing.  A total of 13 participants from 8 African countries took part in the study tour..

Participants interacted with leaders of key institutions such as TERI, Biotechnology Consortium India Limited (BCIL), South Asia Biotechnology Center (SABC), Delhi University, National Academy of Agricultural Sciences (NAAS), and the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB New Delhi Campus) as well representatives of Biosafety and Food Safety regulatory agencies including the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). The discussions highlighted the technological and regulatory developments in India, in the cotton and mustard crops in particular. The team also visited the seed production and processing facilities of Rasi Seeds and TERI’s modern biotechnology labs near New Delhi

In  Maharashtra State, they visited biotechnology facilities and fields operated by local seed industry giants like Maharashtra Hybrid Seeds Co Private Limited (Mahyco), Kalash Seeds, and SeedWorks International Pvt Ltd. The State hosts many of the critical actors in the seed industry in India. The team was briefed on the factors for India’s successes and challenges in using modern biotechnology for agricultural development.

The final leg of the study tour was in Hyderabad. The team visited the field operations of another seed company called JK Agri Genetics Ltd. and had the opportunity to learn more about JK Seeds’ operations in India and Africa.  In addition, a representative from Farming Future Bangladesh (FFB) traveled from Dhaka to Hyderabad and shared experiences of Bangladesh on Bt. Brinjal/Egg Plant with the participants.

Group picture of participants during the interactions with key institutions in New Delhi

India is the leading cotton-producing country in the world, with almost 12 million hectares cultivated in 2019, and 94% of the cotton produced was genetically modified. Africa has ecological zones similar to India, and the continent, through South-South cooperation, stands to gain a lot in terms of knowledge and skill transfer in the biotechnology sector. AUDA-NEPAD has backed biotechnology and biosafety study tours to India over the years to help African regulators and decision-makers to garner hands-on experience in modern agricultural biotechnology development and the regulations thereof. AUDA-NEPAD, in its selection process, gives priority to the countries that are engaged in the use of this technology so that they learn from the Indian experience.

Agriculture remains a critical economic sector in Africa but it needs to be boosted to meet the food and nutrition needs of the continent and provide vital income for more than 80% of the population.  The Indian experience in the cotton sector, which benefits more than 7.5 million farmers and their families, will undoubtedly inspire African stakeholders and decision-makers. Such vital lessons will help AU member states to implement functional biosafety regulatory systems to safely harness existing and emerging agricultural biotechnologies and nurture a commercial seed system attuned to smallholder farmers.