Team of ACSAD experts carrying out a multi-purpose work mission in the Republic of Sudan.
A team of experts from the Arab Center for the Studies of Arid Zones and Drylands (ACSAD) implemented a work mission of working in the Republic of Sudan was to collect blood samples of Nubian goats from research stations in the Ministry of Livestock for the benefit of research “the genetic relationship of Shami goats and Nubian goats and the detection of productive genes and disease-tolerance genotypes using ISSR and SSR technology,” under the guidance of the Director-General of ACSAD Dr. Nasr Edin Obaid.
The delegation, headed by the head of the Department of Epidemiology and Animal Health, Dr. Abdel-Munim Elyasin, conducted a training course for the benefit of 16 specialized trainer technicians from the Ministry of Animal Resources on “Applications o Biotechnology in Genetic Improvement” and the collection of missing data for the Optimal Land Use Project in the Republic of Sudan (Jazira, White Nile and the Blue Nile States).
The Working Group recommended the need to strengthen cooperation with the Ministry of Animal Resources in the fields of genetic improvement, animal health, and biotechnology (training, joint research, livestock and fodder industries), where there is a fertile environment for research and joint studies of the great animal wealth of Sudan in the Arab region.
It also recommended conducting a memorandum of understanding with a Bahri university organizing cooperation in the fields of research and co-supervision of postgraduate students along the lines with Syrian universities; technical support is provided to the Nubian goat improvement station in Al-Qudwab in the Nile River State, in line with what is implementing in ACSAD’s stations. And implementing replicant visits and training of the station technical team in genetic improvement, animal care, nutrition, and record opening, as a dedicated station from the Ministry of Animal Resources in the framework of the project of goats improving in the Arab countries, which ACSAD is implementing.
The delegation proposed a project to study the DNA of animal breeds, to be submitted to the Ministry of Animal Resources for funding, and to train technical cadres of the Ministry of Animal Resources in the operation of the artificial insemination laboratory and semen circulation in the Coco locality, to take advantage of its evolving potentials in the production of semen straws.
During its mission, which took place between 6 and 13 February 2021, the delegation met with Livestock’s minister in charge. The delegation gave a presentation on the work program and its objectives and a detailed explanation about ACSAD, its activities, and trends under its new administration. The delegation also met with senior officials of the Sudanese Ministry of Agriculture, the Director-General of the Arab Organization for Agricultural Development, and officials and professors of Bahri university.