Table of Contents:

SECTION 1:

INTRODUCTION
Current global status of GMOs
GMOs and South Africa
Regulatory framework in South Africa
Genetically Modified Organisms Act
The National Environmental Management Act
The National Environmental Management Biodiversity Act
Biosafety landscape in South Africa
South Africa – Norway Environmental Biosafety Cooperation Project
Why GM Maize?

ACHIEVEMENTS
Southern African Biosafety Course
Student training and development
Biosafety Centre of Excellence
GenØk: lessons applicable to South Africa
Proposed elements for the Centre of Excellence

MONITORING OF GMOs
Current monitoring activities in Europe
Current monitoring in South Africa
Compliance monitoring
Independent Monitoring
A framework for monitoring GMOs in South Africa
Conclusions and the way forward

SECTION 2:

Assessing the impact of commercially produced GMOs on the environment (with specific reference to Bt maize) using a sound scientific approach
Principal Investigators
The use of a multi-stakeholder ERA framework to determine post-market monitoring criteria for MON810
Protein profiling of GM and non-GM maize plants
Study to characterize the protein structure of the CryIAb transgenic(Bt) protein from MON810 maize and a comparison to the same protein produced in bacteria
Profiling of MicroRNA
Study of Bt expression in diverse plant tissues at different stages following planting
A study on the impact of gene flow on the expression of Bt toxin
Assessing the impact of target pests (Lepidoptera) in areas cultivated with MON810 maize
The role of refugia in resistance development
Assessing the impact of Bt maize on non-target Lepidoptera and selected non-target insects on Bt and conventional maize
The effect of direct and indirect consumption of Bt maize on selected non-target insects
Effects of growing Bt maize and its incorporated leaf litter on microbial diversity and mycorrhizal fungi in soil
Conference submissions
Publications
Conferences