Rwanda Advances Registration of Kenya-Tested BT Potatoes

A genetically modified potato developed through research in Kenya is bringing a new dimension to the movement of agricultural technologies across African borders, with Rwanda using scientific data generated in Kenya to support its own regulatory process.

Dr. Eric Magembe, biotechnologist, International Potato Center (CIP) in Africa.

The potato has been developed with resistance to late blight, one of the most damaging diseases affecting potato production. Rather than repeating the full biosafety assessment undertaken in Kenya, Rwanda has considered evidence from the Kenyan research in evaluating the technology.

The approach, known as data transportability, enables regulators to use scientific information generated in another country when they establish that the evidence is relevant to their own environmental, agricultural and regulatory conditions.

Dr Eric Magembe, a biotechnologist with the International Potato Center (CIP) in Kenya and a principal investigator in the country’s biotech potato project, says Rwanda is now moving towards registration of the late-blight-resistant variety.

The development follows years of research in Kenya. Work on the potato began in 2017, with researchers undertaking field trials and generating the scientific information required for biosafety evaluation and regulatory review.

Rwanda’s experience has been considerably shorter. According to Magembe, the country took about 45 days to approve the technology for its regulatory process, compared with the years involved in progressing the research through Kenya’s system.

The difference illustrates the potential value of regulatory cooperation. Biotechnology assessments can require substantial financial and technical resources, including molecular and nutritional studies and other investigations needed to establish the safety and performance of a product.

Using existing evidence can therefore help countries avoid unnecessary duplication while allowing their regulators to retain independent oversight.

Magembe says the approach could be particularly useful in East Africa, where countries often share similar agro-ecological conditions and grow the same crops. He estimates that wider use of data transportability could potentially save countries up to five years in the approval process.

However, transporting data does not amount to automatic approval. According to Julia Njagi, Deputy Director for Biosafety Licensing, Monitoring and Surveillance at the National Biosafety Authority, regulators must first establish whether evidence generated elsewhere is scientifically sound and applicable to their own conditions.

Among the considerations are similarities in agro-climatic conditions, the performance of conventional counterparts and whether the characteristics and mode of action of the introduced trait are well understood. Field trials should also have been conducted across diverse agro-ecological locations using scientifically sound and replicable methods.

For Rwanda, the process has already moved beyond the initial environmental assessment. The Rwanda Environment Management Authority granted the biotech potato environmental-release approval in September 2025.

The potato is, however, not yet in farmers’ fields. Varieties still have to undergo selection and registration by the relevant agricultural authorities before seed can become available for cultivation.

The Kenyan-Rwandan experience highlights how sharing credible scientific evidence could become an important tool for reducing regulatory duplication while speeding up access to agricultural innovations across Africa.