Principles of Plant Genetics and Breeding

460 CHAPTER 25
Barriers to commercializing agricultural
biotechnology in developing countries
Developing countries are as diverse as they are numerous.
The common differences among them are based on
political, socioeconomic, and geographic factors. The
existing technology capacity for biotechnology in these
nations ranges from nil to adequate. The levels of resource
(human, capital) endowment also vary widely, and so
do domestic conditions regarding politics, government
policies, scientific knowledge base, and macroeconomics.
It is inaccurate, therefore, to lump all developing nations
into one category. Rather, two general groups may be
identified: (i) countries in economic transition; and (ii)
countries at the bottom, with no or very limited existing
infrastructural capacities to exploit biotechnology. Most
of the countries in the bottom tier are located in Africa.
Even so, some countries in Africa have begun to put in
place mechanisms for commercially exploiting biotechnology.
These include Kenya, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, and
South Africa. In the Caribbean region, Cuba has implemented
significant biotechnology programs. There are
also the newly industrialized nations in Asia (e.g., China,
India) and Latin America (e.g., Brazil, Mexico).
There are several major barriers to commercializing
biotechnology in developing countries:
1 Lack of appropriate technology.
2 Limited infrastructure for exploiting biotechnology.
3 Intellectual property rights.
4 Biosafety issues.
5 Lack of market mechanisms.
6 The biotech debate being waged in the potential
donor countries.
7 Local and regional politics.
8 Poverty and disparities.
It might appear that a lack of appropriate technology
would be a major barrier to attempts at applying
biotechnology to benefit the needy in the developing
world. This is so because most of the research and product
development occurs in developed countries and is
targeted to solving problems in their regions. However,
existing technologies can be adapted for use in developing
countries, while some new and unique technologies
may have to be developed in situ in these nations to be
effective. The issue of intellectual property rights is also
a potential key barrier. Companies in developed countries
own most of the patents for the technologies that
would be deployed in poor regions. The commercial
companies would have to be adequately compensated,
in most cases, to allow access to their inventions.
These two factors notwithstanding, some experts
believe that the primary barrier to successful exploita-
tion of biotechnology in developing countries is the
lack of market mechanisms that normally constitute the
driving force behind the research and development process.
In terms of agriculture, one of the clearly accessible
markets is the seed market, especially those for cash crops.
Major seed companies in the USA (e.g., Monsanto) and
Europe (e.g., Sandoz) have an interest in accessing this
market. If profitable markets exist for biotechnology,
companies in industrialized nations with resources will
be enticed to invest in the third world oriented projects.
However, if the objective of biotechnology exploitation
in developing countries is to benefit the poor and needy,
then other avenues beside business ventures need to be
sought. Developing countries also need to implement
biosafety guidelines in order to conform to international
regulations for conducting biotechnology research. As
the biotechnology debate goes on in developed countries,
attempts by developing countries to advance their
biotechnology efforts becomes needlessly entangled in
the debate and adversely affected. Some opponents of
biotechnology tend to think that multinational corporations
are only profit-oriented, and look for opportunities
to exploit developing countries.
Apart from barriers that may originate outside the
developing world, local and regional politics in developing
countries pose a significant barrier to the adoption
of biotechnology. Local governments are responsible
for developing or implementing biosafety regulations,
honoring intellectual property rights, supporting local
research and development efforts, accepting biotechnology
as a viable tool for helping local agriculture, and
putting in place the environment for overseas partnerships
to be successful. The issue of poverty is important
in the adoption of any technology. Most of the agricultural
production in developing countries is undertaken
by the rural poor. The concern always is how they can
afford new technologies. The other critical concern is
about the distribution of benefits or the impacts of technology.
A criticism of the Green Revolution is that it
marginalized the poorer producers, while bringing most
of the economic benefits to the already richer producers.
Role of international initiatives in
agricultural biotechnology
With proper caution and good planning, biotechnology
can be successfully implemented in developing countries
to improve agricultural production. It is important
that any effort be approached from the angle of partnerships
and collaboration. Overseas partnerships should
include the public and private sectors, as well as inter-