“The purpose of this paper is to highlight specific activities of brokers in the
biotechnology regulatory process and to report on and critically examine their
emergence in relation to what this might mean for a renewed pro-development
debate spurred through intermediation. This paper explores the different tasks that constitute policy brokerage using different types of organizations
interested in biotechnology debates. The objective is to explore the opportunities
that might exist for moving biotechnology debates to a higher level through
regulatory policy intermediation, thereby enhancing biotechnology development for
the benefit of the poor farmers and consumers in SSA. The discussion proceeds in several parts. First is an exploration of the brokering concept and how it might serve as a framework to analyze different brokering tasks in biotechnology regulation. This is followed by an overview of the context under which brokerage is expected to occur from both global and Kenya’s perspectives. Next is an analysis of selected intermediary
organizations based on their regulatory policy tasks in Kenya’s biotechnology
sector. The paper concludes with a discussion of the emerging dynamics in relation to Kenya’s experience and how lessons drawn can inform a productive biotechnology debate through regulatory policy intermediation.”
