Nehemiah Ng’etich, the acting CEO of the National Biosafety Authority (NBA), does not look like a teacher, much less a preacher. By profession, he is a scientist, whose work relies solely on empirical facts, unlike religion, which rests on faith. Is there a point when his faith collides with his work? “No, not really,” he says. “One is a matter of conviction, the other is work.”
With an undergraduate degree in horticulture from the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (Jkuat), a Postgraduate Diploma in Education specialising in Biology and Agriculture from Moi University, and a Master’s in Science in Plant Ecology from the University of Nairobi whilst pursuing a PhD in the same course and university, life may not be an exact science—but Nehemiah is making it look so, something with a definitive answer, which may explain why he wants to fight misinformation with facts, the corporate equivalent of holding a test tube up to the light and dropping in a pipette of data, or stirring up evidence in a petri dish.
They say the difference between a preacher and a teacher is that a preacher yells, a teacher tells. But what if you are both? Then perhaps you get Nehemiah, an experiment in trodding two worlds which while it may not convince the sceptics, it won’t shake the faith of the believers either.
How is it running an authority you have risen through the ranks?
I have been here for 12 years. Biotech is a new and dynamic field, and its main challenge is the misinformation about GMOs [genetically modified organisms]. But I am here to assure Kenyans that what we do as a body from our research is well-regulated, science-based and factual.
Did you always want to be a scientist?
I have always had an interest in science, initially I was teaching agriculture and biology. I like the innovation part of science and using it to solve societal problems including food through science and research, with the country benefitting.
What does a typical day look like for you?
This is my sixth month acting as CEO. I come to the office at 7.30 am so I can go through the day’s activities.
What’s the most challenging part of your job?
Misinformation. The challenge is we need to do a lot of public awareness and also publicise what we do as a regulator. We are neutral as a body; we do not promote or impede—we only want anything that is passed through NBA to have gone through thorough scientific risk assessment.
Why do you think Kenyans, as you said, have a lot of trepidations against GMOs?
They fear that it causes cancer. That if you eat GMOs you will grow funny things in your body, which is a lot of misinformation. Nevertheless, we are here to prove the correct information—there is no causal link between GMOs and cancer. We rely on a science-based mechanism to look at our process.
We have approved a GMO cotton, modified to be resistant to the burrowers, and we have a GMO maize in the pipeline. It has undergone the biosafety processes already, and we are at the stage of giving final approval. We also have a GMO cassava, which is a virus-resistant cassava—this will be the first GMO cassava in the world.
Do you eat GMO food, yourself?
Haha! Yes. In South Africa, they have commercialised GMO maize. In the US, most of their products are GMOs.
If you weren’t the CEO of the NBA, what would you have been?
I am a teacher by calling and I am also a preacher [chuckles]. I preach in my local church in Eldoret at the Africa Inland Church.
How long have you been either?
Before I joined the NBA, I was a trained teacher. But I have been a pastor and church elder for quite some time now.
Now that you are a preacher, which is a faith-based calling; but you are also a scientist depending on facts—is there a conflict between the two?
No. In science, I rely on facts, but the complication is when you are challenged and you have to go to the lab and prove, and that takes time to get the findings. We are not like social scientists who are fast to communicate, we have to be sure.
Do you have a special ritual that you do with your family over Christmas?
A family come-together and I have also received quite a few wedding invitations which I shall be attending with my family in the village.
That sounds like work, and considering you are a preacher, how do you take time off to take care of Nehemiah?
My best relaxing moment is when I am with my family playing with my three boys and a girl. The firstborn is a daughter, she is in her second year at Mt Kenya University, while the boys are still in primary school. We play football with the boys and I let them win, to encourage them [chuckles].
How is it raising children in this age?
I have a Gen Z in the house and she usually challenges me that what I am doing needs to be put on TikTok [chuckles]. She greatly motivates me compared to our childhood.
What is the most challenging part of being a father?
Knowing that your children are going out and coming back in the evening. It is a prayer for them to come back safely. And praying they become impactful people in society.
You grew up in Eldoret?
Yes. I grew up in a village called Maili Nne, and before it was easy but today there are a lot of challenges based on the amount of information our children are exposed to. The exposure is not all bad, but you need to guide them on the kind of information they are feeding on.
When people think about the leaders in government and parastatals, we think of seriousness and aloofness. What makes you human?
That is an important question. Whenever I introduce myself as the CEO of NBA, they call me a GMO man, and I like it because it allows me to explain what we do.
What does the GMO man do for just himself?
I am a maize and dairy farmer in Eldoret. Most of the weekends I am in Eldoret, unless it is during the school holidays when I am with my family in Nairobi. My wife is also a teacher in Eldoret.
What has farming taught you about yourself?
You have to be patient. When you plant you have to wait for months—be patient that the rains will come, that there will be no pest infestation, and that you shall have a good harvest, even amidst the uncertainty that the prices will be good. You just have to be patient.
What is the one question you are asking yourself now?
Whether we shall have a nation where we shall use science to solve food security issues in Kenya, just as it has been done in other countries across the world.
If you could boil down everything you have learned in life into a single statement, what would you say?
Life requires patience. Always be slow in reacting to issues of life—get facts before you respond.
Who do you know that I should know?
Hmm, I know many people. I think you know Nelson Mandela. You should know him because of his life principles, that even after being jailed for 27 years he became president. That means in life you can be down for a while but your time is coming when you shall rise too, you shall be up.
