Zimbabwe—The Status of Biosafety in Zimbabwe – A Legal Perspective

Zimbabwe, like most countries in Africa, has gone through difficult times in trying to balance the judicious use of biotechnology for socioeconomic development and addressing the possible threats of some aspects of modern biotechnology on the national economy, human health, socio-cultural interests, and the environment. Additionally, there are strong stakeholder differences in perception over the utility and safety of modern biotechnology techniques and products. Consequently, a barrage of measures was put in place by the government and the legislator as far as 1998 to ensure safety in biotechnology practice in the country. These include revision of existing laws, enactment of new ones, and developing regulations and guidelines. The existing frameworks, although comprehensive, need to be updated to cater for advances in the field of biotechnology. Additionally, there is need to harmonize institutional arrangements to close gaps and reduce duplication. This chapter, therefore, provides a snapshot of the current status of Zimbabwe's legal and institutional arrangements for biotechnology research, development, and application.