A China-Pakistan joint laboratory for livestock disease prevention and control has been launched in Luoyang, central China's Henan Province, as the two countries expand cooperation on animal vaccines, disease control and related technologies.

Senator Saleem Mandviwalla, chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Finance and Revenue, led a Pakistani delegation to the launch at Luoyang Modern Biology Group.

Dr. Nazir Hussain Kalhoro, director general of the Sindh Institute of Animal Health, also attended, Gwadar Pro reported on Sunday.

According to Luoyang Modern Biology Group, the laboratory will serve as a platform for joint research, technology transfer, personnel exchanges and training, and the commercialization of research results.

Professor Bai Zhonghu has been appointed director of the joint laboratory. Zhang Gaiping, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, and other experts also attended the launch.

The laboratory builds on earlier cooperation between the Sindh Livestock and Fisheries Department and Luoyang Modern Biology Group.

In May, the two sides signed a joint venture agreement covering the distribution and supply of animal vaccines in Pakistan, including foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccines.

The agreement also covers technology exchange and future cooperation on animal identification and traceability systems.

Pakistan's Press Information Department (PID) said in a July 27 statement that technical work was also under way on the Sindh-08 strain of FMD, with vaccine trials in China and Pakistan expected to be completed by November.

Credit: Independent News Pakistan (INP) — Pak-China