Faisalabad, November 11, 2024-US Ambassador Donald Blome inaugurated a new five-year Climate-Smart Agriculture program at the University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF) on Monday. This US-funded initiative aims to equip Pakistani farmers with innovative tools and techniques to combat climate change and improve agricultural resilience.
A UAF spokesperson while sharing the details said that this program, which will benefit farmers nationwide, builds on the existing US-Pakistan partnership in agriculture. The United States previously funded the establishment of UAF’s Center for Advanced Studies in Agriculture, underscoring its long-term commitment to Pakistan’s agricultural sector.
Ambassador Blome was joined at the launch by US Consul General Kristin Hawkins, USAID Mission Director Kate Somvongsiri, UAF Vice Chancellor Prof. Dr. Muhammad Sarwar Khan, and representatives from Pakistan’s government, academia, and agribusiness community. The program is inspired by the work of Nobel Peace laureate Dr. Norman Borlaug, whose efforts in the 1960s significantly increased wheat production in Pakistan.
“Through this initiative, the United States and Pakistan will collaborate to improve crop yields and farmers’ livelihoods,” Ambassador Blome stated. He emphasized that for over 60 years, the US and Pakistan have partnered to enhance agricultural productivity and environmental conservation, supporting a “brighter, more prosperous, and climate-resilient future for the Pakistani people.”
Dr. Muhammad Sarwar Khan, UAF Vice Chancellor, praised the program as a milestone for promoting climate-smart agriculture. He highlighted previous US collaborations with UAF, including a decade-long partnership with Washington State University professors in the 1960s and the USAID-funded Center for Advanced Studies, which has achieved significant food security results since its establishment in 2014. Dr. Khan noted that UAF has also introduced high-yield crop varieties compatible with global productivity standards, including wheat, sugarcane, soybean, maize, and cotton.
