Deputy Chief Agriculture Office of United States Agency for International Development (USAID), Malick Haidra with a delegation visited the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS) Lahore and called on Pro Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Masood Rabbani at City Campus Lahore on Wednesday. Malick Haidra was accompanied by USAID COR Asad Ullah Khan, USAID PEEP COP Muhammad Junaid and USAID PEEP Livestock Specialist Dr Sanaullah. Later a detailed meeting of the delegation was held with UVAS Senior faculty members.
Addressing the meeting, Prof Dr Masood Rabbani spoke about the historic collaboration between UVAS and USAID for the uplift of livestock, dairy sector especially farming community of rural areas in Punjab. He mentioned the role of Center for Applied Policy Research in Livestock (CAPRIL) for developing policy papers, conducting various field studies for the development of livestock, dairy and poultry sectors. He said that CAPRIL developed the livestock vision 2025 and conducted a study on adaptability of Holsteain cattle in Punjab.
UVAS senior faculty members listed different short term training programs conducted to impart technical knowledge to dairy farmers/professionals, butchers and in-service faculty members for their capacity building and updating veterinary curriculum. They also briefed the delegation on civic engagement services, especially free vaccination services and establishment of an RO plant and a biogas plant for the facilitation of rural community. They called for efforts in the area of dairy mechanization and clinical science.
Malick Haidra said the visit aimed to find opportunities in the area of human resource development and to check the exotic animal’s health and disease management systems, their productivity and constraints. He also emphasized academia and private sector partnership for the uplift of the livestock sector. He said public-private partnership would be very beneficial not only for the flourishing of livestock, dairy and poultry industries but also for the farming community. He lauded the university’s role in the development of livestock and related sectors. Later, the Delegation visited the Center for Applied Policy Research in Livestock (CAPRIL).