This archive report was first published on 21 December 2019.
On December 21, 2019, the Kenyan Cabinet made a significant decision regarding genetically modified (GM) crops, specifically approving the commercial farming of biotech (BT) cotton.
The move aims to increase cotton production in the country, with experts estimating that annual production could rise to 260,000 bales, up from the current level of 28,000 bales.
The approval was reached during a Cabinet meeting chaired by President Uhuru Kenyatta, and it comes despite the ongoing ban on genetically modified organisms (GMOs) in the country, which has been in place since 2012.
Field trials on cotton have been conducted in various parts of the country over the past five years, with scientists recording positive results. The approval of GM cotton is seen as a step towards lifting the ban on National Performance Trials on maize, which was stopped by the Ministry of Health in 2017.
"The case that we are currently putting forward is the one on cotton, after that we can now push another case for maize," Agriculture Principal Secretary Hamadi Boga said in a previous interview.
