Page 19 - Msingi Afrika Magazine Issue 13
P. 19

Wholeness




          push government policies towards   commercialization GMO maize in at   artificially pack nutrients into single
          more chemical inputs, fertilisers   least four African countries. So the   crop commodities.
          and hybrid seeds. On its website,   Gates Foundation is not only fund-
          AGRF has a special section it calls   ing public acceptance of GMOs, it   Then, of course, there is Bill Gates
          the Agribusiness deal room, which   is also directly funding the approval   himself. Sitting down with heads of
          “has directly facilitated over 400   and commercialisation of GMOs in   state, policy makers and business
          companies with targeted investor   Africa.                            leaders, Gates tries to convince
          matchmaking and hosted more than                                      them that his view of the world
          800 companies to explore network-  Gates grantees are clearly carrying   is the one to go after. The world
          ing opportunities”.13 This is clearly   the Gates agenda and influencing   has gotten used to pictures of him
          market matchmaking serving corpo-  global agricultural policy. In just   shaking hands or sitting shoulder
          rate interests, not farmers.       over a decade, the Gates brainchild   to shoulder with the leaders of
                                             in Africa, AGRA, has managed to    the world. Indeed, many of those
          While most of the Gates grants     manoeuvre itself from nowhere      leaders seem very eager to be in
          are aimed at pushing technological   right into the centre of agricultural   these pictures and heed his advice.
          solutions, many are also oriented   policy discussions across the con-  The most recent display of this
          towards policy change. A total of   tinent. Similarly, while resistance to   was at Joe Biden’s virtual “Leaders
          45 grants address policy or policy   GMOs in Africa remains high, the   Summit on Climate” where Gates
          makers. For example, Iowa State    AATF is managing to get legislation   shared his vision on how to fight the
          University got a grant to support   adopted to accept GMOs, as seen   climate crisis.16 His recipe to tackle
          implementation of policy changes   most recently in Ghana. It’s just as   the climate crisis is very similar and
          aimed at increasing the supply of   important to look at who the Gates   equally dangerous to how he wants
          new seeds to farmers in Africa. The   Foundation is supporting as who   to feed the world: develop new tech-
          World Economic Forum received a    they are not supporting; African   nologies, trust the market, and put
          grant to support a “policy platform   farmers. The Foundation provides   in place policies so that corporations
          for ag innovation and value chain   zero funding to support farmer seed   can make it all happen faster.17
          development”, whilst the African   systems, which supply 80 to 90% of
          Centre for Economic Transforma-    all the seeds used in Africa. Instead,   Gates clearly isn’t listening to or
          tion got a grant to promote agri-  it provides a lot of funds to initia-  learning from the people on the
          cultural transformation in Africa   tives that destroy them. Further-  ground. So why should anyone
          aimed at policy reforms. In addition,   more, the Gates Foundation props   listen to him? Rather than being
          the Foundation is actively involved   up biofortification as a solution to   listened to, Gates and his top down
          in bankrolling the “Enabling the   malnutrition, taking funds and atten-  corporate technology agenda must
          Business of Agriculture” project,   tion away from much more practical   be resisted and stopped in its tracks.
          implemented by the World Bank,     and culturally appropriate efforts
          amongst many other initiatives.14  to improve nutrition by enhancing   GRAIN wishes to thank Camila
                                             on-farm biodiversity and people’s   Oda and María Teresa Montecinos
          Gates’ enthusiasm for GMOs is      access to it.15 Over the last decade   for their help in compiling the data-
          made clear through its grant da-   or so, the Gates Foundation has giv-  base and to ‘A Growing Culture’ for
          tabase. Michigan State University   en US$73 million to biofortification   their feedback on the draft and their
          received US$13 million to create   initiatives that essentially seek to   work on the infographic.
          a centre in Africa that provides
          training for African policy makers
          on how to use and promote bio-
          technology. The African Seed Trade
          Association got a grant to increase
          farmers’ awareness “of the benefits
          of replacing their older varieties of
          crops with newer seed”. AATF got
          US$32 million to increase aware-
          ness on the benefits of agricultural
          biotechnology and another US$27
          million to fund the approval and



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