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For a large majority of MEPs, the G7’s decision to base its programme for food security in Africa on intensive agriculture is a mistake. The European Parliament took its first official stance on the subject with the adoption of a report on the New Alliance for Food Security and Nutrition (NAFSN) on Tuesday (7 June).
“We have already made the mistake of intensive agriculture in Europe, we should not replicate it in Africa . . .” said Mara Heubuch, a German Green MEP . . .
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. . . [T]he NAFSN has a worthy objective: to lift 50 million people out of poverty by 2050 by enabling investment in the agricultural sectors of ten African countries. . .
But in return for increased investment, this partnership pushes its African members to implement certain political reforms. . . .
These reforms include the liberalisation of access to farmland, the promotion of certified seeds (GMOs and hybrids) and the implementation of tax reforms to facilitate private investment in agriculture.
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In the report . . . MEPs demanded that the G7 abandon its commitment to GMOs. . . Under the NAFSN, partner countries must agree to support “the distribution, adoption and consumption of biofortified crop varieties”.
Read full, original post: European Parliament speaks out against agricultural colonialism in Africa
