Veteran journalist Macharia Gaitho, who spoke on behalf of the media fraternity, observed that a constant narrative blames the Kenyan media for misinformation and propaganda.

“A report showed that Kenyan media is the worst candidate for misinformation, especially on GMOs. This is a misleading and erroneous narrative,” said Gaitho.

A study by the Alliance for Science, a project funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation showed that the main source of false or misleading comments on this subject are statements by “leading Kenyan politicians”, which are then relayed by the media.

“Both sides in this debate, those in favour of GMOs and those against, have to some extent propagated this type of misinformation,” said Anne Maina, coordinator of the Kenyan Biodiversity and Biosafety Association (BIBA).

For instance, Azimio La Umoja One Kenya Coalition Party leader Raila Odinga claimed that eating food from GMO crops would make men grow breasts and women’s testicles.

But experts, including those from the Kenya Plant Health Inspectorate Service (KEPHIS), consider that there is no scientific evidence of sex changes in humans caused by eating GMO food.

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