FAO in 2005-2008

During the campaign to eradicate Rinder pest, 17 teams ( comprising of 51 field veterinarians) were constituted and more than 10,000 villages were randomly selected throughout the country. This exercise developed human resource and generated data about the occurrence of animal diseases in different regions of the country. Subsequently, this led Pakistan to be declared as a Rinder pest free country in 2007
The data generated assists policy makers/veterinary authorities to plan better projects that cover all aspects of prevention and control of animal diseases.

FAO in 2007-2009

In addition, several training workshops were conducted explaining the significance of surveillance and its role in further improving disease reporting system. This approach creates awareness amongst the technical staff and contributes in the development of a regional strategy for the prevention and control of major livestock diseases (e.g. foot & mouth disease, hemorrhagic septicemia, peste des petits ruminants) prevalent in the region.

Livestock Shelters: COB Construction, a Local Solution

Livestock farming forms an important component of most livelihoods in NWFP and PAK. Farmers living in the earthquake-affected areas traditionally used a type of animal shelter referred to as banyan having walls made of mud mixed with straw or loose stones with a wooden slab serving as a roof. During the earthquake, many of these “baniyan” shelters collapsed killing the livestock within. It is estimated that total productivity losses for cattle in NWFP and PAK amounted to US$ 302 million.

FAO working with a local NGO developed an animal shelter prototype using material locally available to farmers. COB construction technique is a local solution for constructing earthquake resistant livestock shelters. A traditional building style where straw, sand and clay is mixed to a monolithic mass and walls are built while material is still damp. This technique is also used in Europe, America and Middle East.

FAO in 2006-2008

FAO distributed construction material for 7000 shelters and 2962 metric tonnes (mt) of animal feed in the areas of Muzaffarabad, Balakot, Hattian, Shangla, Battagram and Kohistan. The assistance for shelter and much needed nutrients was to protect cattle from getting perished or being sold and sustain milk production particularly through harsh winter periods.

Crops Monitoring through Satellite Technology

The project capacity builds government planners for technology transfer to develop deliverables such as improved agricultural information and timely agricultural forecast.
Project products facilitate improved crop-yield and crop-area forecasting and further serve to forecast productivity to determine food surplus or conversely, deficit situations. Initial results of wheat and rice yield models were very good and were able to forecast the production about one or two months before harvest with appropriate accuracy. Crop-yield forecasting system combined with well-based agricultural statistics can also serve as an advanced regional or nation-wide early warning system on food-supply.

FAO in 2008-2010

The Organization provides expertise in the ago-meteorological crop modeling, yield forecasting, remote-sensing based crop area estimation and also crop production forecast. It further advocates to local/provincial organizations to maximize the use of available resources and facilitates the cooperation between the Pakistani partners.