FAISALABAD:University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF) Vice Chancellor Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan has said that Islamic countries should pool their energies and resources to attain durable, reliable and indigenous food security.
He was talking to a delegation of progressive farmers from Sudan. He said that Sudan, which is the largest country in the Islamic world in terms of area, has immense potential for agriculture which could be utilized to increase food production. He added that the people of Sudan are also interested in organic farming and Pakistan could help them in this field.
The Sudanese delegation included Haider Abdul Latif, Adnan Gilani, Ali Asghar, Asif Hussain and Muhammad Nadeem in addition to Muhammad Yaqoob Kabbar, a progressive farmer
Muhammad Yaqoob Kabbar appreciated the academic and research progress of the UAF and hoped that Sudanese scholars intend to visit UAF to acquire latest knowledge in the field of agriculture. “For this purpose, mutual efforts at the university and diplomatic level of both the countries are needed”, he added.
He said that Pakistan has made achievements in cotton production which must be transferred to other Islamic countries, especially Sudan. He said that Sudan is rich in natural resources and offers ample opportunities for agricultural development and Pakistan should take advantage of it.
He said that the short length of Sudanese cotton fiber has made it important to gain better trade advantage in the global competitive system.
He invited the UAF Vice Chancellor to visit Sudan with his delegation and said that this visit would provide an opportunity for agricultural scientists to explore new avenues of cooperation for mutual education and research there.
Earlier, Principal Officer Public Relations and Publications UAF Dr. Muhammad Jalal Arif briefed the Sudanese delegation about the educational and research activities taking place at the university and said that in past, Sudanese scholars were used to visit UAF to quench their thirst for knowledge. But for some years, this process could not sustain due to some reasons and it can be re-worked. He said that it is not possible to grow cotton in Pakistan under an organic system because, here, insects attacking cotton could not be controlled without pesticides.
He apprised the guests of the progress of research on pink bollworm and other pests in the Department of Entomology.
Other scientists of the university including Dr. Muhammad Tayyab, Dr. Jam Nazir Ahmed, Dr. Amir and Dr. Saad Farooq were also present in the meeting. The members of the delegation later visited the Pink Bollworm Laboratory of Entomology where they were given a briefing by Dr. Muhammad Tayyab.