LAHORE: The Civil Services Academy (CSA), Lahore, has initiated academic engagement with South China Agricultural University (SCAU) to strengthen the agricultural governance capacity of Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) officers, adding a new dimension to Pakistan-China cooperation during the 75th anniversary year of diplomatic relations.
The initiative seeks to link public administration with agricultural expertise as food security, climate change, crop losses and agricultural emergencies increasingly become governance challenges.
Dr Syed Shabbir Akbar Zaidi, Director (Capacity Building/Common Training Programme) at CSA Lahore, is leading a Pakistani delegation participating in an international training course, “From Biocontrol to Intelligent Monitoring to Ecological Management: New Plant Protection Technologies for Green Agricultural Development in the Belt and Road Countries”, being held in Guangzhou from Aug 10 to Aug 29.
The programme brings together participants from Pakistan, Laos, Vietnam, Ethiopia, Malaysia, Algeria, Sri Lanka and Egypt. Its first phase involves field observations in Deng Ta County, while the second comprises technical and policy sessions at SCAU.
Addressing the inaugural session, Dr Zaidi said PAS officers, including assistant and deputy commissioners, were often among the first officials to respond when agricultural problems escalated.
“A pest outbreak, crop loss, or food price fluctuation rapidly becomes a governance, welfare and public order challenge,” he said, stressing the need to expose PAS officers and Assistant Commissioners Under Training to agriculture, food security, plant protection and pesticide management.
SCAU officials welcomed the initiative, saying closer links between agricultural research and public administration were essential to addressing climate change, food security and rural development. The university expressed willingness to share China’s experience in intelligent monitoring, ecological pest management and agricultural modernisation.
Dr Shoukat Ali, a Pakistani scientist and professor at SCAU who has received the Tamgha-i-Imtiaz, described the collaboration as an example of scientific diplomacy. He said firsthand exposure to China’s agricultural systems could help Pakistani administrators translate technological advances into better policies and public services.
