Nigeria biotechnology institutions don dey work with religious leaders to make pipo accept genetically modified organisms (GMOs) as debate dey hot about di benefits and wahala wey dey follow genetic farming and di food wey dem produce.

Di National Biotechnology Research and Development Agency (NABDA) for Nigeria bin do one workshop last July to teach people about GMOs. Di agency director general, Prof Abdullahi Mustapha, talk say genetically modified food no dey harm human beings, animals or di environment. E talk say di main benefits na say e fit resist drought, increase harvest and help food security.

Mustapha also talk say Nigerian companies don dey produce di seeds, and e stress say make we embrace science and technology to solve food security and climate change wahala. Di agency don call religious and traditional leaders to help change pipo mind about di matter.

Di GMO matter no be only health concern, e also touch political economy, religion and international trade wahala. GMOs mean say scientists don change di genetic make-up of animals or crops to give dem better traits like pest resistance, drought tolerance or better nutrients.

One biochemist for Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Abdulrazak Ibrahim, explain say genetic modification don help crops like soybean, cotton and canola for export. E talk say GMOs fit help developing countries compete for global market, especially for tropical areas wey dey face pest wahala, disease, drought and bad rainfall.

Experts dey talk say seeds wey dem modify fit increase harvest, reduce pesticide use and improve productivity. For staple crops wey dem dey grow for tropics, GMOs fit change di game for food security.

Ibrahim talk say di technology dey work well when dem combine am with other systems like farmer training, seed delivery and market access. Di aim na to make farmers benefit well from wetin dem dey grow.

Nigeria first try GMO farming for 2015, and since then, di farming don spread go Ghana, Burkina Faso and Sudan. South Africa don dey grow GMO corn, soybean and cotton since 2000. Nigeria don approve genetically modified cowpea, drought-resistant corn and Bt cotton.

Experts dey warn say just to choose GMO seeds no go solve di problem. Dem need better regulation, good production strategy and ethical practices to make GMO farming work well. Countries need to check di risks and benefits before dem adopt GMO farming on large scale.

For Nigeria, experts believe say di country dey ready to scale GMO farming. Di National Biotechnology Development Agency and National Biosafety Management Agency don already put Nigeria for front when e come to biotechnology for Africa.

But farmers still dey worry. WHO study show say some countries dey restrict GMOs because dem no sure about di health benefits. Ibrahim talk say di trust gap dey come from affordability, seed access and long-term effects. E talk say when farmers see di benefits for field trials and clear data, dem dey accept am more.

For example, farmers for India accept Bt cotton when dem see better harvest with less pesticide. For Brazil, soybean farmers embrace GMOs when dem see say e reduce production cost and improve export. But for Burkina Faso, farmers no like di fibre quality of Bt cotton, so dem stop am.

Ibrahim talk say di best way to make people accept GMOs na through open, science-based talk wey dey backed with evidence and respect for community values. When farmers and consumers see di economic sense and safeguards, dem go fit make better decisions.