12,000 Nutrition Workers Trained Under Pak-Korea Project, UAF Conference Told

Key Points:

Korean Ambassador Han Sungho says Korea and Pakistan are committed to strengthening bilateral relations in food security, nutrition and agriculture.
A two-day international conference of the Pak-Korea Nutrition Center has opened at the University of Agriculture Faisalabad.
The centre has trained over 12,000 frontline nutrition workers, the UAF vice chancellor told the conference.

FAISALABAD: Korea and Pakistan are committed to strengthening bilateral relations in food security, nutrition and agriculture, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea Han Sungho said on Tuesday.

He was addressing the inaugural session of the two-day international conference organised by the Pak-Korea Nutrition Center (PKNC) at the CAS Auditorium of the university. The conference is being held under the theme ‘Advancing Nutrition through Partnerships & Policy’.

The ambassador said he was overwhelmed by the achievements of the Pak-Korea Nutrition Center project. He said it had been made possible by the close and strong partnership between South Korea and Pakistan, also by the dedication of all stakeholders.

He said Korean agencies were contributing to different developmental initiatives in Pakistan in several sectors, including trade and economic cooperation, health, food and nutrition security and cultural heritage.

UAF Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Zulfiqar Ali said nutrition was not merely a health issue but a fundamental pillar of human development, economic productivity and national prosperity.

Nutrition was not merely a health issue but a fundamental pillar of human development, economic productivity and national prosperity.

He emphasised the need to bridge the gap between scientific research, public policy and community-level interventions.

He said the centre had trained over 12,000 frontline nutrition workers and developed numerous nutritious and fortified food products. It had established modern research and training facilities and strengthened provincial outreach centres.

He said the centre had also awarded competitive national research, policy research and start-up grants to promote innovation, entrepreneurship and commercialisation in the food and nutrition sector.

Country Director of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) in Islamabad, Donggil Oh, said sustainable development required coordinated efforts among governments, academic institutions and development partners.

He emphasised the importance of strengthening institutional capacities, promoting knowledge exchange and translating research into practical initiatives to improve nutritional outcomes.

Central Project Director of the Pak-Korea Nutrition Center, Prof Dr Moazzam Rafiq Khan, said the centre was playing an important role in promoting nutrition research, capacity building and international collaboration.

He said the conference would provide an effective platform for sharing scientific knowledge, identifying research gaps and developing policy recommendations to address nutritional challenges.

GCWUF Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Kanwal Amin, Chief Food and Agriculture Section of the Planning Commission Dr Arif Rehman, Deputy Country Director KOICA Sodam Baek and Project Manager Consultant Dr Jaehan Kim attended the event, along with others.

Read in Urdu: اردو میں پڑھیں