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(HERALD) Treat biofuels with caution, Sadc told

Treat biofuels with caution, Sadc told
Herald Reporter

SADC states should treat biofuels with caution so that the drive to increase their use does not threaten food security in the region, participants at a three-day regional trade and development, agro-biodiversity and food security workshop heard. The workshop — organised by the Community Technology Development Trust and held in Norton — drew agronomists, policy analysts, environmentalists, economists and government officials from Malawi, Lesotho, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

National Biotechnology Authority acting chief executive officer and registrar Mr Abisai Mafa said the production of biofuels should only come second to food security. Mr Mafa said countries should first conduct comprehensive analysis of biofuels before opening their doors to that technology.

"We need to move with caution on biofuels so that we do not harm Zimbabwe and the region’s food security especially now when a lot of effort is being put towards promoting them," he said.

CTDT executive director Mr Andrew Mushita said the advent of biofuels was going to cause a major shift in terms of land use by multinational companies.

He cited the South Africa where large tracts of land have been allocated to biofuels at the expense of food for human consumption.

In her presentation at the same workshop, Northern Arizona University political economics lecturer Professor Carol Thompson said land use for biofuels by multinational companies in Africa was likely to see land going back to foreigners if restrictive policies were not put in place.

"The danger can be averted if production and consumption of biofuels is kept under local community control to power generators and make candles rather than for export," she said.

Malawian assistant director of industry Mr Clement Phangaphanga said Southern African governments should instead expand ethanol plants that it already had rather than get into other forms of biofuels like jatropha.

The participants recommended that social, economic and environmental assessments should be carried out before embarking on biofuels and also to promote alternative forms of energy such as solar power, among others.

Labels: BIOFUELS, FOOD, SADC, ZIMBABWE

posted by MrK @ 8:42 AM