Biotech Gets Priority in Pakistan
10 March 2005 | News
Biotechnology
is now engulfing several countries in the South Asian region. While China and
India are leading the race, other countries too want to make progress with
biotechnology development. India's immediate neighbor Pakistan too has
launched itself into biotechnology development in a small way. Though at the
moment there is no cultivation of genetically modified crop in Pakistan, it
sees biotech in agriculture, healthcare and industrial sectors as a priority
area. And it expects to have modern biotech companies in the next year. Dr
Anwar Nasim, chairman, National Commission on Biotechnology in Pakistan,
reasoned, "Pakistan is predominantly an agriculture-based economy.
Agriculture accounts for the 24 percent of Pakistan's GDP. It covers a total
area of 19,671 million acres of which 5,411 million acres are cultivated. It
is a country of over 150 million people. And biotechnology can help us a
lot."
The modern biotech industry in Pakistan is extremely small. "Using traditional means, our ancestors were breeding animals and growing crops of different varieties and these common practices have damaged the cultivated land through water and wind erosion, compaction, salination and water logging. To overcome the impending shortage in this field, conventional methodologies have to undergo a paradigm shift. Thus the government is primarily focusing on various aspects of agricultural biotechnology," explained Dr Nasim.
But Pakistan has seen a lot of work using traditional biotechnology methods. It has created many new plant varieties. The government is understood to have laid strong foundations for biotechnology in a coordinated way. "The Ministry of Science and Technology has in fact invested over Rs 100 crore in various projects," informed Dr Nasim. There are 27 government institutes and universities working in the field of biotechnology. "The main thrust of most of these institutes has been development of genetically modified crops that are best suited to our environment and can increase the productivity of the crops with minimal environmental hazards," he added.
Pakistan has a National Commission on Biotechnology. The Commission is an advisory body to the Ministry of Science and Technology to help monitor new developments in the field of biotechnology at national and international levels and it recommends appropriate measures. The Commission comprises 14 members, which includes expert agriculturists, environmentalists, industrialists and scientists. There is no national biotech policy and the National Commission is studying various regulations, especially the developments happening in India so that it can formulate one on similar lines in Pakistan. Pakistan will soon be coming up with its own biosafety norms.
According to Dr Nasim, the National Commission for Science and Technology chaired by the President of Pakistan has declared biotechnology as one of the highest priority are among the selected research fields. A project has been launched to improve research in agriculture, livestock, and medical sectors at universities and R&D organizations. Under the project liberal grants are being made available for active research scientists working in this field. Further, the private sector is also being encouraged.
Dr Nasim informed that Pakistan is keen on initiating an Andhra Pradesh model for Faisalabad. At the moment biotech development is happening in Faisalabad, Islamabad, Rawalpindi, Jamshoro, Karachi, Lahore, Multan, Peshawar, and Quetta. The biotech research in Pakistan is carried out in the National Institute for Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering (NIBGE), Faisalabad, the Centre of Excellence in Marine Biology (CEMB), NFC Institute of Engineering and Fertilizer Research, National Institute of Leather Technology, and Pakistan Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) Laboratories.
The next step forward for Pakistan is to build business relationships and kick-start the biotech activity, said Dr Nasim. During BioAsia 2005, few companies from Pakistan signed agreements with some of the leading biotech companies from India-Bharat Biotech, Natco Pharma, Otira Pharma.
Ch. Srinivas Rao with Sunitha Natti, CyberMedia News in Hyderabad
With developing countries joining the joint venture bandwagon in biotech, India's immediate neighbor is no different. To increase the domestic production of biotech products, a six-member delegation from Pakistan was in Hyderabad to try out the technology transfer pacts with Indian companies. This delegation was headed by Dr Anwar Nasim, chairman, the Pakistan National Commission on Biotechnology. He is also the president of the Federation of Asian Biotech Association (FABA) and science advisor for OIC Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation (COMSTECH). Dr Nasim is trained in genetics and has edited over 45 books. In this exclusive interview, he shares his vision and developments in Pakistan. Could you give an overview of the biotech
scene in Pakistan? What are your present trade links? What is the status of your biotech R&D
activity? Equally, there needs to be a strong connection between the industry and research institutes and academies, which is a little bit weak at present but is improving at a faster rate. Prospects of the industry are still a challenge but all-out efforts are being made to spell out success. What are the main objectives of your
Commission on Biotechnology? It has been decided that initially special attention should be paid to human resource development and in view of the limited resources. Agriculture and health will be the top priority areas. You have been instrumental in setting up the
FABA. What do you wish to achieve? |
Dr
Anwar Nasim, chairman, Pakistan National Commission on Biotechnology
