- Dozens missing, 9 dead in migrant boat wreck off Spanish Canaries
- Death toll from Hurricane John hits eight in Mexico
- Storm Helene's toll rises as rescue and cleanup efforts gain pace
- SpaceX launches mission to return stranded astronauts
- Storm Helene kills 44, threatens more 'catastrophic' flooding as cleanup begins
- SpaceX set to launch mission to return stranded astronauts
- Storm Helene kills 44, threatens more 'catastrophic' flooding
- Boeing strike grinds on as latest talks fail to reach agreement
- Iran 'news' sites, hackers target Trump ahead of US election
- US ports brace for potential dockworkers strike
- Japan's speedy, spotless Shinkansen bullet trains turn 60
- US hurricane deaths rise to 44, fears of more 'catastrophic' flooding
- Global stocks mostly rise, cheering Beijing stimulus
- Europe en route for Moon with new simulator, says astronaut Pesquet
- Fireworks forecast if comet survives risky Sun flypast
- Argentina judge orders dictionary to delete pejorative definition of 'Jewish'
- Global stocks rise on rate hopes, Beijing stimulus
- S.African woman turns 118, among the oldest in the world
- UK clears $4 bn AI partnership between Amazon, Anthropic
- Barca fans barred from Champions League away game over racist banner
- Chinese stocks extend surge, Europe higher on Beijing stimulus
- Pope says Church must 'seek forgiveness' for child sexual abuse
- China caps week of 'bazooka' stimulus for ailing economy with rate cut
- Cuts, cash, credit: China bids to jumpstart flagging economy
- France's debt weighs heavier ahead of budget debate
- Iran treads carefully, backing Hezbollah while avoiding war
- Return to sender: waste stranded at sea stirs toxic dispute
- 'Broken' news industry faces uncertain future
- On remote Greek island, migratory birds offer climate clues
- Taken from mother by nuns, victim seeks answers as pope visits Belgium
- China cuts amount banks hold in reserve to boost lending
- Hong Kong, Shanghai extend surge as China optimism boosts markets
- Vietnam president reiterates support for Cuba during official visit
- Drought reduces Amazon River in Colombia by as much as 90%: report
- Stay or go? Pacific Islanders face climate's grim choice
- Florida bracing for 'unsurvivable' Hurricane Helene
- Poverty rises to over 52 percent in Milei's Argentina
- Chloe's see-through look may not be for Kamala Harris
- Champagne houses abuzz over English sparkling wine
- Macron, Trudeau pledge to work for 'decarbonized' economies
- Hurricanes, storms, typhoons... Is September wetter than usual?
- China stimulus, tech optimism boost stock markets
- 'Unsurvivable' Hurricane Helene races towards Florida
- Macron meets Trudeau in Canada as both face political setbacks
- South Korea surges in UN innovation index
- Chloe's see-through look may not be for Kamala
- Floods threaten Niger's historic 'gateway to the desert'
- China economy hopes boost global equities
- Ubisoft shares sink after 'Assassin's Creed' delay
- German economy to shrink again in 2024: think tanks
Court challenge in Kenya over GM crops
A Kenyan lawyer said Friday he has filed a court challenge to a decision by the new government to lift a decade-old ban on genetically modified crops.
Paul Mwangi wants the High Court to set aside last week's cabinet order allowing the open cultivation and importation of GM crops to Kenya, which is currently in the grip of its worst drought in four decades.
"The hasty removal of all regulatory protocols... is neither rational nor reasonable," Mwangi said in court documents dated October 13.
The government of newly elected President William Ruto last week "effectively" lifted the 2012 ban saying it was in response to dwindling food security.
In his lawsuit, Mwangi argues that the move was unconstitutional as there were concerns over the safety of GM crops and that it also risked driving small-scale farmers out of business.
"It derogates the rights of peasants and people working in rural areas of access to adequate food that is produced through ecologically sound and sustainable methods," he said.
The government has defended its decision, saying it would enable Kenya to have disease-resistant crops and improve yields.
Mwangi -- a counsel for defeated presidential candidate Raila Odinga -- told AFP on Friday he was waiting to hear from the court when the case will be heard.
Kenya, like many other African nations, banned GM crops over health and safety concerns and to protect smallholder farms, which account for the vast majority of rural agricultural producers in the country.
However, Kenya had faced criticism over the ban including from the United States which is a major producer of GM crops.
Activists and agriculture lobby groups last week protested over the lifting of the ban, saying it opened the market to US farmers using sophisticated technologies and highly subsidised farming and threatened the livelihoods of small-scale farmers.
Agriculture is the backbone of Kenya's economy, contributing over 20 percent to gross domestic product.
Ruto, a former chicken seller turned millionaire businessman, was elected in August on a promise to turn around Kenya's stuttering economy and tackle a cost of living crisis.
Within weeks of taking office in September, he halved the price of fertilisers to improve crop yields in the midst of the drought that has affected 23 of 47 counties.
Four consecutive rainy seasons have failed in Kenya, Somalia and Ethiopia, an unprecedented climatic event that has pushed millions across the Horn of Africa into extreme hunger.
A.Agostinelli--CPN