Govt to work with FAO to counter animal disease threats in Pakistan

ISLAMABAD: The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) and the Ministry of National Food Security and Research have signed an agreement to improve food security and increase the resilience of livelihood of the livestock farmers to animal disease threats in Pakistan.

The government has approved a $6.6 million project 'Risk-based control of Foot and Mouth Disease in Pakistan', of which an agreement was signed in Islamabad on Tuesday.

FAO addressing the request of the government will implement this project over the next 6 years to help curb Foot and Mouth Disease (FMD) in the country, according to a press statement. The project will address FMD lab diagnosis, outbreak surveillance and rapid response, providing good quality vaccine for prevention, improving legal framework and capacity building of the stakeholders.

This will eventually curtail losses caused by the disease, increase productivity of livestock and improve livelihoods.

FMD is the most prevalent and economically the deadliest infectious disease of cattle and buffaloes in Pakistan.

Annual losses are estimated to exceed $692 million in terms of loss of milk production, treatment cost, body weight loss and mortality in calves.

Fazal Abbas Maken, secretary of Ministry for National Food Security and Research, signed the agreement on behalf of the Government of Pakistan.

Thanking the government at the signing ceremony, FAO representative in Pakistan Minà Dowlatchahi said: “FAO is honoured to support the Government of Pakistan in implementing this project since it will be instrumental in tapping the potential that the livestock value chain offers to improve livelihoods, resilience of communities and contribute to agriculture GDP growth. Around 8.5 million small-holder families across Pakistan, dependent on livestock for their livelihood, will benefit from the work under this project.”

She said the “project will focus on ensuring that animals stay in good health, and become a sustainable source of livelihood for all including women and youth.”

The FAO has been working for the control of FMD in Pakistan since 2008. On a FAO-OIE FMD Progressive Control Pathway, Pakistan moved from stage 0 to stage 1 in 2009 and to stage 2 in 2015.

The current project will move Pakistan to stage 3 and thus opening up further international markets for the export of meat and other livestock products.