Dairy farmers and industry from Halabja and Duhok meet in a seminar on animal health
In the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, it is not often that dairy farmers visit each other’s farms and discuss how to solve challenges. Challenges such as the health of their cows, how to manage the farm, how to access quality feed and how to breed.
In an attempt to promote cooperation and knowledge exchange, the Agriculture Team of the Consulate General of the Netherlands organized a seminar, bringing together a wide range of sector players from both provinces. The recent event marked the closure of two rounds of the Farmer Field School activities, in the spring in Halabja and in the autumn in Duhok.
In these farmer field school sessions, farmers concluded that specific diseases were hard to deal with and that access to good veterinary services and medication might require closer collaboration. They created a WhatsApp group for exchange of information.
At the seminar, two experts presented how to manage animal health and how to breed the herd. Lively discussions and many questions followed. The event facilitated networking opportunities, allowing participants to exchange ideas and connect with each other. Government officials, private companies, experts, researchers, and farmers were present.
Collaborative efforts
Deputy minister of Agriculture and Water Resources, Mr. Karim Sulaiman opened the meeting and expressed his gratitude to the Consulate General of the Netherlands for the collaborative efforts. He highlighted the importance of such initiatives as a significant opportunity to bring relevant stakeholders closer together as well as to strengthen the economic ties and enhancing livestock sector in the KRI.
Facilitating knowledge exchange
Over the past few years, we have seen several small to medium-sized dairy projects being established in a joint effort between local and Dutch companies. In addition, enticed by its potential and encouragements from local authority, several large Kurdish companies have decided to expand their businesses and enter the dairy industry. Therefore, the Netherlands Consulate in Erbil wants to actively engage in this subsector. Creation of a network and facilitating knowledge exchange between farmers and companies is a start. Netherlands prioritizes the promotion of the sustainability of dairy farming and the value chain.
