Public Participation in Decision-making Regarding GMOs in Developing Countries: How to Effectively Involve Rural People

This summary document resulted from the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) email conference entitled "Public participation in decision-making regarding GMOs in
developing countries: How to effectively involve rural people", that was hosted from January 17 to February 13 2005 by the FAO Biotechnology Forum. According to the organisers, production and consumption of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) is a topical issue and could impact on socio-cultural systems of rural populations in developing countries. Involving the rural people in decision-making on GMOs was the discussion topic for the email conference. Over 500 people subscribed to the conference and 116 messages were posted, from 70 people living in 35 different countries. Half of the messages were from people in developing countries.

According to the document, there was broad agreement that citizens, including rural people, should be involved in decision-making when it is likely to impact on them, but opinions on the degree and nature of the suggested participation differed. It was proposed that participation of the rural people could usually be indirect, through representatives they had chosen. It was felt that effective participation depended on access to unbiased and comprehensive information on the nature and consequences of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). This information would have to be adapted to the needs and capacities of the various groups of rural people and their representatives in order for it to be helpful. Once available, the information would have to be communicated effectively. Numerous channels of communication were suggested and the importance of extension services, radio and use of local languages was particularly emphasised. Many participants complained that misinformation abounded (both for and against GMOs) and some were quite sceptical that a real public participation exercise might take place on this issue and, if it did, that its outcomes would have any impact. It was suggested that the costs of involving the rural populations in decision-making might be shared between the government and other relevant stakeholders. International agreements were regarded as being useful, but concern was expressed that commitments to these agreements might compromise the outcomes of an eventual national debate on GMOs.

7 key themes have been highlighted from the discussions:

• The degree and nature of public participation of rural people in decision-making regarding GMOs
- While most people agreed that participation of rural populations, including women and indigenous populations was a good and necessary development there was considerable discussion about the optimal level of participation and the form it should take. Why the public would be involved in decision-making on GMOs was questioned, given the technical nature of the subject. Others argued that decision-making should not be left to scientific experts and raised the question of who exactly from the rural populations might be expected to participate in decision-making on GMOs.
• What type of information do the rural people require?

- There was considerable agreement that the information needed to assist the rural people to participate in decision-making processes associated with GMOs should be adapted to the needs and capacities of the various groups of rural people and their representatives. Overly technical information/language should be avoided. It was argued that bombarding farmers with information not relevant to farming was a waste of time and money; information relevant to their farming practice was, on the other hand, crucial.

• Misinformation and the quality of information required by the rural people

- Participants stressed the need for the public to have access to unbiased information but many complained that misinformation (either for or against GMOs) was a problem. The importance of education and access to good quality information was emphasised. The standard of the information required by rural populations was defined by participants in a variety of ways: it should be quality, unbiased, factual and objective.

• Scepticism about the public participation process

- Some people were sceptical about the whole subject. Even if such a process was to take place, some people were sceptical about the outcomes. For one participant the key was having a legitimate convenor at the country level that was not seen to have a vested interest.

• Appropriate channels for communicating with the rural people in developing countries

- It was apparent from the suggestions that facilities differ enormously within and between countries. The vast majority of the rural poor in developing countries currently do not have access to e-mail or other modern ICTs (information and communication technologies) and do not write fluent English. Some of the barriers to communication are more basic than restricted access to modern media. Literacy is often weak in many rural societies This being so, many written means of communication, including newspapers and fact-sheets, have reduced impact. Apart from the question of access, deprived rural communities have little time for the library, television, radio and printed media and, likewise, "computer, internet, video and cinema are yet to be used by the majority in the remote countryside". The need to use local languages to communicate information effectively was stressed by many contributors.

• Costs of public participation

- It was suggested that the costs of involving rural people might be too large in the presence of limited resources in a developing country and might not be prioritised when pressing issues of debt repayment, health and education had to be considered. However, it was also countered that if countries were prepared to work as regional units, then money and other scarce resources could be saved.

• International agreements/guidelines and public participation

- Several contributors raised issues of public participation in connection with international agreements/guidelines on decision-making and GMOs. Many developing countries have signed international agreements (such as the Convention on Biological Diversity, the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety and various World Trade Organisation agreements) that are relevant to GMOs.

Click here to access the background document to the email conference.

Click here to view the email messages posted as part of the process.