Korea Hands Over $7m Nutrition Centre to UAF

Key Points:

KOICA formally hands over the Pak-Korea Nutrition Center to the University of Agriculture Faisalabad at a completion ceremony
Korean Ambassador Han Sungho and KOICA Pakistan Office Director Oh Dong-gil attend the handover
The seven-year project, 2020 to 2026, was completed with about $7 million in Korean grant assistance
The centre will continue its nutrition research under the Higher Education Commission and the university

FAISALABAD: The Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) on Thursday handed over the Pak-Korea Nutrition Center to the University of Agriculture Faisalabad. The ceremony marked the completion of the centre’s seven-year establishment project.

According to the KOICA handout, Korean Ambassador Han Sungho, KOICA Pakistan Office Director Oh Dong-gil and UAF Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Zulfiqar Ali attended the concluding ceremony. A plaque was unveiled to mark the handover of the centre.

Around 40 per cent of children under five in Pakistan were stunted when the project was launched in 2020. KOICA said the cause lay less in food quantity than in the absence of established healthy eating habits.

KOICA said Pakistan had yet to develop a comprehensive system for training highly qualified nutritionists. It said the shortage of community-level nutrition education professionals limited mothers’ and children’s access to information on healthy eating.

The centre was established under KOICA’s Official Development Assistance programme to train nutrition education professionals. It was meant to build a foundation for spreading sound nutritional knowledge through local communities.

The three-storey centre has lecture rooms and research laboratories for training nutrition education professionals. Its laboratories carry advanced analytical instruments for assessing nutritional content and harmful substances, while dormitories house trainees from remote areas.

Implemented over seven years from 2020 to 2026, the project was completed with about $7 million in grant assistance from the Korean government. Master trainers trained at the centre now train teachers, nutritionists and female health workers in various regions.

The project also developed fortified foods and recipes reflecting Pakistan’s local food culture. It contributed to expanding women’s opportunities for social and professional participation.

Ambassador Han Sungho commended the Korean and Pakistani stakeholders who contributed to the project’s achievements.

I believe that a meaningful initiative such as the Pak-Korea Nutrition Center will serve as another cornerstone in strengthening the partnership between Korea and Pakistan

Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Zulfiqar Ali thanked the Korean government for its support in improving nutrition education in Pakistan. He said the university would continue its efforts to ensure that the nutritional knowledge transferred through KOICA’s support project was disseminated nationwide.

After KOICA’s support ends, the centre will continue its nutrition research and development activities under the Higher Education Commission and the university.

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