May 21, 2020

HSP Fellow Assists Pakistan's Animal Quarantine Department In Receiving $800K Infrastructure Grant

In Karachi, Pakistan, HSP Fellow Zargham Nawaz, Animal Quarantine Department (AQD), helped his organization receive a $800,000 (USD) public sector development funding grant from the Pakistani Government. The funding will go to building a facility with three new labs focusing on: Microbiology, Clinical Pathology, and Molecular Biology. These labs will be utilized to help the Animal Quarantine Department test animal and animal products that are imported into Pakistan, in order to prevent the spread of exotic diseases into Pakistan and to make sure all foods for human consumption are Halal.

This new facility will be critical for the health security and trading capacity of Pakistan, as Karachi is the main trading hub in Pakistan, with two seaports and a large international airport. Zargham came up with the idea for the project, when he realized that AQD’s current facility did not have adequate space or resources to conduct the amount of testing needed, which was in-turn slowing down the entrance of imported animals and goods into the country.

Zargham credits his participation in HSP’s Health Security Futures Fellowship as a key catalyst for developing this idea. Here is what he said, when asked about the impact the fellowship had on him:

“The Health Security Futures Fellowship was an excellent opportunity and life changing experience for me. During the course of this fellowship, I acquired new ideas and got a chance to know and learn from different accomplished mentors. Project development activities during the fellowship training institute and the virtual training program, helped me in gaining insight on different health security challenges posed to mankind in this era of fast trade and travel and how these can be addressed by developing sustainable solutions to shared global health challenges. Through training and participation in the diversified fellowship, I was able to develop the idea of this project by comprehending the knowledge gained through modules on Sustainable Development, Food Security and the One Health Model.

“As Health Security Partners Future Fellowship alumni, I am contented to practically implement the ideas and knowledge imparted through Fellowship. I consider this as a shared success of Health Security Partners team members, who trained me to think about and accept the challenges.”