DNA Law in Tanzania

Genetics factors into everyday life everywhere but in terms of policy, some countries are still at the very early stages of defining what they find acceptable use of DNA information.

Tanzania has been working to define a “DNA law” since 2005 and this week met to discuss what they think needs to be included. From the Tanzania Standard Newspapers:

SCIENTISTS and other stakeholders reviewing the legal framework for the application of Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) technology in the country have concluded that its scope is still narrow.

Stakeholders met yesterday at a workshop held at the Law Reform Commission to review a legal framework of a Bill presented to parliament last November. They proposed that for a DNA law to hold, its scope must be broadened beyond the usage of human identification and genetic privacy alone to cover plants and animals.

I would have thought it would be easier to take another country’s guidelines (U.S. or UK) and work from there. But I guess in developing countries that haven’t adopted Western ways of thinking especially those that are run by religious governments, there will be cultural differences that affect what genetic procedures are considered acceptable including preimplantation genetic diagnosis and genetically modified foods.

What cultural differences in the perception of DNA are you aware of?

NB: More about Tanzania from the CIA World Factbook. It’s in Africa, you know.

Tags: tanzania, international health, global health, genetics, genes, dna, diseases, illness, health, dna law