Pakistan-HK conversation on sustainable agriculture

Experts from CUHK and Pakistani institutions gather to explore collaborations on agriculture.

Agriculture is considered the backbone of Pakistan’s economy. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the Belt and Road country is among the world’s top 10 producers of wheat and cotton and is ranked 10th in rice production. Meanwhile, CUHK has led groundbreaking research in agricultural technology for over two decades, particularly in developing stress tolerant crops to combat global food shortages. Recognising the synergies and complementary skills and resources, a webinar was organised by the State Key Laboratory of Agrobiotechnology (SKLA) (CUHK) and the RGC-AoE Center for Genomic Studies on Plant-Environment Interaction for Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security (RGC-AoE Center) in January to explore potential collaborations between Pakistan and Hong Kong.

Supported by the Consulate General of Pakistan Hong Kong and the Office of Academic Links, the webinar themed ‘Agriculture-Environment Interaction and Its Implications’ brought together 10 experts from CUHK and Pakistani institutions, including the University of Agriculture Faisalabad and the Agricultural Biotechnology Research Institute, Faisalabad, who shared their works on various topics related to agriculture, such as genomics, climate change, pollution, and soil management. In addition, a roundtable discussion was co-hosted by Prof. Hon-ming Lam, Director of SKLA (CUHK) and the RGC-AoE Center, and Dr. Muhammad Anjum Ali, Director General Agriculture (Extension and Adaptive Research) Punjab, to discuss ways to generate more impactful research on sustainable agriculture that supports the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

Watch the video to revisit the webinar.