Highlighting the Insect Resistant Maize in Africa (IRMA) project's mid-December annual meetings in Nairobi, Kenya, was news that an application to conduct the first field planting of transgenic Bt maize in Kenya would be submitted and likely approved before year's end.

The application was indeed approved during the week of 13 December by the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) Biosafety Committee and was scheduled for consideration by the National Biosafety Committee on 12 January 2005. If all goes well, planting of Bt maize at the project's secure, open quarantine site could go forward in February 2005. Dr. Stephen Mugo of CIMMYT and Dr. Simon Gichuki of KARI presented and defended the application for field evaluation of maize containing the cry1Ab or cry1Ba (Bt) genes. The broader significance of the above is that it keeps the IRMA project on track with its timetable to get insect resistant maize out to Kenyan farmers. This notable progress was but one of many activities reported and considered at IRMA's annual project meetings held 8-10 December, which included the reporting/planning meeting, the fifth annual stakeholders meeting, and the steering committee meeting. Reporting/Planning Meeting

IRMA project manager, Stephen Mugo (right), shows transgenic maize to farmers in the biosafety greenhouse. The plants are being grown for seed multiplication and for crossing in the greenhouse with locally adapted maize varieties.

Scientists from multiple disciplines gathered together for the reporting/planning meeting to hear from their colleagues about progress toward objectives during the past year and to formulate integrated work plans for the coming year. High points and achievements of 2004 included the official launch of the level-2 biosafety greenhouse by the Hon. Mwai Kibaki, President of Kenya; the importation of Bt maize seed for testing in the biosafety greenhouse; the entry of conventional IRMA maize varieties with insect resistance into the Kenyan National Performance Trials (NPTs); completion of surveys to determine available refugia across the nation's five maize growing agro-ecozones; and analysis of urban consumer acceptance surveys on GM crops.

Based on milestones achieved during 2004, ten theme groups put together detailed work plans and proposed budgets for 2005, in accordance with the recently revised project plan. The proposed 2005 activities chart a clear course forward, based on the crucial field testing and analysis of IRMA's Bt maize varieties. Equally significant is the strong possibility that IRMA maize varieties with conventional resistance will be favorably reviewed by the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS) in national performance trials and pre-released in February 2005 for testing in farmers' fields under their management.

Fifth Annual Stakeholders Meeting

Approximately 75 people, in addition to a sizable media entourage, participated in the IRMA stakeholders meeting. Participants were first taken to the biosafety greenhouse complex at KARI-NARL, where they inspected experiments on the efficacy of Bt maize against Kenyan stem borers. They also saw contained breeding activities aimed at producing Bt varieties that are well adapted to Kenyan conditions and for producing seed for further experimentation.

Following the greenhouse visit, stakeholders traveled to the Nairobi Hilton Hotel, where Dr. Mpoko Bokanga, Executive Director of the Africa Agriculture Technology Foundation (AATF), chaired the meeting. Project Manager Stephen Mugo provided an overview of IRMA activities during the past year, including the new management structure for the project. He informed the stakeholders that Phase II of the project will focus on getting products to farmers, with a major effort to addressing regulatory issues. The stakeholders also heard from representatives of current and new IRMA partners: KARI, CIMMYT, the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture, the Rockefeller Foundation, and the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF).

Remarks by Dr. Joe DeVries of the Rockefeller Foundation captured the gist of many of the brief addresses. He said that since IRMA's inception, the Foundation has appreciated the project's work on valuable technologies with the potential to change the lives of farmers, and has been impressed by its spirit of transparency and well intentioned communication efforts. He stressed that promising or proven technologies must be shared with poor farmers with the same or even greater urgency as they are with the rich, and that the IRMA project presents a great opportunity for Kenyan scientists to assess novel technologies under their own conditions.

During the question and answer period, IRMA scientists fielded questions from farmers, representatives of civil society, university teachers and students, scientists, and others about biosafety, regulatory and trade issues, and, as in the past, the timetable for products to reach the field. A proceedings of the meeting will be published in 2005 and made available to the public.

Steering Committee Meeting

The IRMA steering committee met in a private session during the final day of meetings to consider the proposed work plans and budgets and discuss strategic issues. Renewal of the project for Phase II and review of the project plan were high on the list of priorities. Among the participants were Dr. Masa Iwanaga, Director General of CIMMYT, Dr. Romano Kiome, Director of KARI, Dr. Andrew Bennett, Executive Director of the Syngenta Foundation, Dr. DeVries, and Dr. Bokanga.