On the other side of the argument, are the Americans and the scientists developing GM crops. American companies have been making their mark around Africa, presenting new developments in biotechnology that claim to cure a slew of issues and ailments for Africans. For example, Hellen Keller International has been a force in engineering an orange sweet potato that provides large helpings of vitamin A to the body. Vitamin A deficiency is of serious concern throughout Africa, and has caused millions of African children to become blind. (Schmickle, 2013) But anti-GM activists maintain that American companies are simply trying to spread their business into Africa's large market. Local scientists like Alois Kullaya, who is developing a type of water efficient corn, pleads that the government lax their regulations. He says, “We have finished confined laboratory trials from genetically modified seeds in 2009, but until now we can’t conduct field trials because of restrictive liability regulations, which means that all this research goes to waste.” (Simbaye, 2013) Kullaya and many others hope to prove to the government that their biotechnology could have a huge positive effect on Tanzania's food security. (Pulitzer, 2013)
Regardless of stance on GMOs, it is clear that the issue of Tanzania's food security needs to be addressed. The severe weather in Tanzania shows no signs of plateauing and the population continues to multiply. Already, millions of Tanzanians are relying on food handouts for survival. "Tanzania faces a future where farmers will have more mouths to feed under ever more difficult conditions — due to the double whammy of population growth and climate change." (Pulitzer, 2013)
So what do the farmers want? Mwajuma Mpanju says that all farmers want is choice. A diverse assortment of tubers on the market. She states, "Farmers are interested in any technology that works. All tools should be available so that farmers themselves can choose what is best to meet their needs." (Simbaye, 2013)