The National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA) invited stakeholders in the country’s biotechnology sector to its annual conference on National Biosafety and Biosecurity, to find lasting solutions to the food crisis in Nigeria.
The two-day, 6th edition of the conference, themed; Biological Safety: An Imperative for Increasing Population, Food Security, and Environmental Sustainability,” was held in Abuja, where stakeholders expressed their determination to explore the use of relevant technologies that would provide safe and adequate food for Nigerians.
The Minister of Environment, Mr. Mohammed Abdullahi, who was represented at the occasion by Dr. Lawrence Adigwe, Director, Human Resources of the ministry, noted that the NBMA was established to show the government’s commitment to enabling Nigerians to benefit from the practice of safe biotechnology.
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He stated that nothing is more important than food and that a nation that fails to feed its people is a failed state, adding that a secure nation is one that grows its own food, processes what it produces, competes confidently in international markets, and creates jobs for its citizens.
The Director General (DG) of the NBMA, Dr. Rufus Ebegba, said in his remarks that the agency brought this year’s edition of the conference to the university system so that they would also have the opportunity to know what is happening on the ground.
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“We want to also focus on what is biosafety and biosecurity within the academic system because biosecurity is also key in the research community as well as biosafety”. “This year’s conference is to ensure that biosafety and biosecurity are pursued vigorously,”, DG said.
The Vice-Chancellor of the University of Abuja, Prof. Abdul-Rasheed Na’Allah, who was represented by Prof. Wasiu Gabadeen, Director of Studies, said that the conference was apt and that the outcome would help to ensure a strong and efficient biosafety and biosecurity system in Nigeria.
