MUSCAT: The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Water Resources (MAFWR), represented by the Directorate General of Animal Wealth, began on Sunday, September 22, 2024, a training workshop aimed at enhancing the efficiency of its veterinary staff.
Around 30 veterinarians and technical staff of the Ministry are taking part in the workshop underway in Barka. The goal is to develop veterinary clinic operations and enhance the skills and abilities of these staff.
According to officials, the workshop covers scientific topics such as diagnosing contagious and non-contagious animal diseases, protocols for dealing and monitoring epidemic diseases. This is in addition to various types of laboratory diagnostic samples, methods for collecting, preserving, and handling samples and optimal resource use in samples.
Furthermore, the workshop will address the preservation and handling of medical vaccines, vaccination procedures and programme safety. Additionally, it will also focus on rational practices for antibiotic use in light of the pressing matter of antimicrobial resistance, which can have a detrimental effect on the food supply chain.
Earlier this year, the Ministry held a forum addressing veterinary medicine in the country due to its significant economic and social impact. One of the key axes of the forum addressed the role of veterinary medicine in achieving food security goals in line with Vision 2040.
Furthermore, according to the Ministry, there are currently 69 fixed public veterinary clinics and 41 mobile veterinary clinics as of 2024. The number of private veterinary institutes including pharmacies, laboratories and clinics in the country is well over 445.
In 2023, around 4.477 million animals were vaccinated while around 2.9 million head of livestock were treated for various diseases.
Moreover, according to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI), the value of exported livestock amounted to RO 3.3 million in 2023, representing a 45 per cent increase in comparison to the previous year’s figure which stood at RO 2.2 million.
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