I am not a law expert. But if laws are made for the common person to interpret and follow, then my thoughts about the contentious laws in Kenya are not very far from the truth. As I was going through various chats on Facebook, I came across an appeal by a reputable Non-governmental organization with strong representation across Africa, seeking to indulge farmers in signing a petition against what they called “the new seed sharing laws.”

The “Seed and Plant Variety Act CAP 236” of which they talk was established in 1972, reviewed in 1991, 2012, and amended in 2016. In 2022 a case was filed against the act by farmers who argue that the law goes against several articles in the Kenyan Constitution. It is expected to be ruled upon soon.

What caught my attention are the nature of chats which seemed to have veered off the issue and focused instead on blaming GMOs and Biotechnology for the amendment. 

Image showing the origin of the contentious law and how it’s been reviewed across the years. The letter and spirit of this act is not rooted in promoting GMOs against other technologies or seeds. Learn more on the act at https://www.kephis.go.ke/frequently-asked-questions-seeds-and-plant-variety-act-cap-326  Picture from Google.

Every farmer should get their farming’s worth, with the freedom to choose what to grow, in which season, and in what quantities. More so, a farmer should have the freedom to choose where to get the seed they plant without breaking any laws. In this breadth, the government has a mandate to protect every farmer from forces bent on disrupting farming activities.

Apparently in Kenya, the hottest debate in farming circles is the enactment of a law purported to criminalize sharing indigenous seed. This debate has generated lots of conjecture and emotional outbursts with lots of energy directed at blaming GMOs and biotechnology as major beneficiaries of the “new law” which is not the case!  

In most chats, annoyed participants are expressing anger and claiming the law has been crafted to kill indigenous seed and give way to GMO seed. They also claim that peasant farmers who share indigenous seed are being targeted to give way to imagined “GMO multinationals”, claims that lack truth and merit. 

As we continue the sensitization, education and advocacy about biotechnology, there is a need for concerted efforts from all players to pool resources and focus on giving the technology a foothold by intensifying campaigns across the country. Farmers need to understand that in this war, there is no winner that the government is trying to level the playground and root out all unscrupulous seed dealers.

I wouldn’t wish to take any other side other than standing with farmers and helping them understand that it’s not about one technology (GMO) “lording” over the rest, but a gesture by the Kenyan government to protect all manner of seed producers and growers from illegal seed dealers who profit where they didn’t sow. 

What is the origin of the contention in the proposed law all technologies notwithstanding?

Let’s look at the law from a layman’s point of view believing that all laws are made easy for the common mwananchi’s interpretation. The most contentious part of the law that’s causing all the fury states that “any person found sharing, exchanging, selling, producing and multiplying uncertified seeds is liable to a prison sentence of up to a maximum of two years or a fine of KES 1,000,000 or both.”

Since independence Kenya has had vibrant systems that have developed the agricultural sector and established multi-sectoral bodies tasked with running and implementing government policies.  These bodies and agencies have collaborated with private sector partners to develop solutions that improve accessibility and performance by the smallholder farmers.

Such arrangements between the government and its development partners has brought about legislation that has facilitated growth in several sectors, one of them being “certified seed production, handling, and distribution”. These laws have ensured a continuous supply of certified seed at affordable costs.

Government institutions such as the Agriculture and Food Authority-AFA, Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization-KALRO, Agricultural Development Corporation-ADC, Kenya Seed Company-KSC, Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Services-KEPHIS, and among others from the private sector have worked for decades to ensure a steady supply of certified seed for all Kenyan farmers.

There is need for legislation on seed production, sharing and distribution   

I have always believed that on very rare occasions do governments form legislation to hurt their citizens. In Kenya, this law was necessitated by endless cries from farmers against unscrupulous dealers flooding the market with counterfeit seed, fertilizers and other farming implements. These cartels threatened livelihoods by causing poor yields and taking advantage of farmers.

Nowhere in the genesis of the contentious law formulation were GMO seed interests put before any other seed. In any case, Kenya has to date only released three GMO crops after certification by the National Biosafety Authority-NBA. None of the three is a “Kenyan indigenous crop”.

It doesn’t help the cause when farmers are pushed to demand for the rejection of a law that has been purposefully misinterpreted. In fact, the law is about stopping the illegal production, sharing and distribution of any type of seed, be it indigenous, hybrid or GMO. If masters of the law see a loophole that may cause confusion in its implementation, then the right drive is to push for its amendment, but not changing focus to GMOs and biotechnology.