By By our correspondent
Projects such as community farming, awareness and capacity-building of farmers and breeders have been launched under the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), USAID and European Union in Sindh, he said while talking to media at the office of DG Livestock.
Parhiyar said that JICA has agreed to launch projects in six districts, three each in upper and lower Sindh. He said that Thatta, Badin and Umerkot have been selected for this model project in lower Sindh, while three districts of upper Sindh would be selected soon during the visit of a six-member delegation of JICA.
He said that Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah was taking keen interest in the development of livestock sector and also encouraging the foreign delegates and organisations interested in its development.
He said that availability of trained manpower due to start of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Youth Development Programme (SBBYDP) and maintenance of law & order has proved as main factors of attracting foreign development organizations to invest in Sindh.
The Secretary Livestock said that his management was also going to launch three years programme under the second phase of SBBYDP at cost of Rs563.683 million to provide effective job skilled training to 5,145 youth including 2,100 trainees in Animal Husbandry, 1,515 in Poultry and 1,530 in Fisheries component.
Among the 2,100 trainees of animal husbandry course, Parhiyar said 1,000 would be selected on merit for training at institutes of Patoki, Lahore, Faisalabad, Okara, Sindh Agriculture University Tando Jam, Sindh University Jamshoro and Agriculture Training Institute Sakrand.
He said that this programme would provide training in community mobilisation, stock assistant courses, disease diagnosing courses and artificial insemination. Similarly his management was also planning to provide awareness especially among the women breeders / farmers about handling their animals carefully under the USAID.
He said that this trained workforce would be engaged in foreign funded projects.
Responding a question, Meer Mohammad Parhiyar said that the first phase of SBBYD Programme had been launched with the designed capacity to provide training to the 3,200 youths at estimated cost of Rs282.00 million.
He said that against the designed capacity 2,885 youths were selected and their training in different courses was about to complete.
To another question, the Secretary Livestock said that 90 per cent improvements have been made in the animal diseases reporting due to the monitoring task forces.