THE designation of Ghana as the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) collaborating centre for Africa, focusing on plant breeding and associated technologies for food and nutrition, is being seen as a pivotal moment in the application of genetic modification in Africa. In a recent press statement, the IAEA announced its collaboration with the Biotechnology and Nuclear Agriculture Research Institute (BNARI) of the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission, in a four-year commitment “to promote research and development on mutation breeding in West and sub-Saharan Africa.” Najat Mokhtar, IAEA Deputy Director General and Head of the Department of Nuclear Applications termed mutation breeding…