Food Safety: HOMEF Applauds FG on validation of Biosafety Action Plan

BY SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

Health of Mother Earth Foundation (HOMEF) has commended the Federal

Government for endorsing the revised National Biodiversity Strategy and

Action Plan (NBSAP).

The commendation is contained in a statement issued on Saturday by Miss Kome Odhomor, Media/Communication Lead at HOMEF.

The Federal government in June 2025, approved its National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, NBSAP, 2025-2030, aiming

to stop and reverse biodiversity loss by 2030.

The NBSAP fully aligns

with the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (K-M GBF), with

a focus on halting and reversing biodiversity loss by 2030.

According to HOMEF, the revised National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan, NBSAP, has been adopted

as a comprehensive government policy with 23 national targets, each

aligned with the corresponding global biodiversity targets and goals.

The statement quoted Executive Director, Dr Nnimmo Bassey, as stating that it is a vital step

toward protecting Nigeria’s biodiversity and advancing environmental justice.

“We are especially encouraged by NBSAP’s firm stance on the regulation

of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs), which aligns with our long-standing advocacy for biosafety and food sovereignty.

“In a time when the indiscriminate adoption of genetically engineered crops is increasingly being pushed by multinational interests, NBSAP rightly cautions that unregulated GMO use could be catastrophic to our

environment, health, and sustainable development.”

Also Joyce Brown, Director of Programmes and Lead on Hunger Politics, noted

that: “The strategy’s support for traditional plant breeding,

non-transgenic biotechnologies, and the fair sharing of benefits from

biological resources reflects a welcome policy shift.

“It affirms the rights of smallholder farmers and communities to control their seeds and food system, putting the power back in the hands of people.”

HOMEF urge the government to back this with action by halting GMO approvals pending a biosafety audit, reviewing the National Biosafety Management Agency Act 2015 as amended in 2019, in line with the National Biosafety Framework, investing in agroecology, and supporting community seed systems.

HOMEF emphasised that it remains committed to ensuring Nigeria’s biodiversity thrives, free

from genetic pollution and corporate control.

Editor

Jude Ossai (JP) a veteran journalist is a National Diploma holder in Mass Communication from Ogwashi-Uku Polytechnic Ogwashi-Uku, Delta State. He also studied at Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT) Enugu and Imo State University, Owerri for his first and second degrees in Mass Communication, respectively. He writes extensively on politics, crime, corruption, climate change, healthcare, human rights, social justice, among others.