Islamic Law and Biotechnology in Nigeria: Constructing a Sharia-Based Regulatory Ethics for Genome Editing

This dissertation constructs a Sharia-based regulatory ethics framework for genome editing technologies (particularly CRISPR-Cas9) applicable to the Nigerian biomedical and policy context. The rapid emergence of genome editing as a clinical and agricultural technology presents Islamic jurisprudence with unprecedented challenges regarding human dignity, divine creation, permissible intervention in nature, and distributive justice in healthcare. The study employs a constructive Islamic bioethics methodology, combining systematic analysis of classical and contemporary Islamic jurisprudential texts on human body, creation, and medical intervention, with review of national and international genome editing regulatory frameworks, interviews with 20 Nigerian Islamic bioethics scholars and 15 biomedical scientists, and Delphi consultation for framework validation. The original contribution is a Nigerian Islamic Genome Editing Ethics Framework (NGEEF) built on the Maqasid objective of Hifz al-Nafs (preservation of life), principles of Darurah (necessity), and Islamic bioethical principles of non-maleficence and distributive benefit. Findings reveal that current Nigerian regulatory frameworks for genome editing do not incorporate Islamic ethical perspectives, and that Muslim biomedical scientists face unguided ethical decision-making in research contexts. The dissertation recommends adoption of the NGEEF by Nigeria's National Health Research Ethics Committee and by the Nigerian Islamic Medical Association in its professional guidance documents. Keywords: Islamic bioethics, genome editing, CRISPR, Sharia regulation, Nigeria.