Islamabad: Federal Minister for Industry and Production and National Food Security Rana Tanwar Hussain has said that the government wants to increase livestock exports from Pakistan as the sector contributes to 62% of the country’s agricultural GDP.
Speaking in a briefing on livestock sector, Federal Minister Rana Tanwar Hussain said that livestock sector is important in Pakistan’s agriculture as around 8 million families are connected with this sector. He said, there is a lot of potential to get foreign exchange from the livestock sector.
He said that Pakistan is the fourth largest milk producing country and all necessary measures should be taken to meet the meat and milk requirements of the entire country.
Rana Tanwer explained that the development of agriculture is a mission of the current government, which aims to increase the export of goods. He said that for the first time in the history of Pakistan, a bill has been drafted to regulate veterinary science and animal welfare. He said the bill would be approved by the cabinet soon.
The federal minister said that practical measures are being taken to protect livestock from diseases. “We need time to strengthen the control system to protect animals from disease,” he said. He said that special measures are being taken to create real information about animal diseases in the country. He also said that a track and tracking system is being developed for the animals, which will help in monitoring the animal’s movements.
Earlier, the Livestock Commissioner Dr Akram reminded the federal minister about the problems faced by the livestock and the work of the department.
Federal Secretary Food Security Captain (r) Muhammad Asif was also present at the briefing.