Tripoli, 29 August 2013:
India is offering to help set up a soil, water and tissue testing centre in Libya. The subject formed part of discussion today in a meeting between the Indian Ambassador, Anil Trigunayat, and the Minister of Agriculture, Animal and Marine Wealth, Saleh Hamed Mahjoub.
Libya suffered a major outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease after the revolution, with 40,000 sheep infected across the country last year – largely because of inadequate testing and prevention programmes. Other bovine diseases active in Libya include Bluetongue disease, often fatal, and Peste de Petits Ruminants (PPR), otherwise known as goat plague.
In addition to the centre, which the ministry is said to be interested in, India has offered Libya a number scholarships as well as joint research and education programmes in the area of agriculture, food processing and agronomy. According to a statement by the Indian embassy, Mahjoub who only took over the agriculture portfolio three months ago, said that Libya was interested in benefitting from India’s experience in the field, particularly at this point in time. [/restrict]
