Thai livestock delegation in Thimphu
During the meeting, Bhutanese minister expressed hope to enhance this collaboration by sharing the skills and knowledge between the two countries. He also thanked the Thailand government for supporting Bhutan in human resource development through scholarship programs.
Minister said Bhutan might export agriculture products like apple and potatoes to Bangkok in future.
According to Dr. Sithar Dorji, the Program Coordinator from the Bhutan Food and Agriculture Regulatory Authority (BAFRA), the team is here to discuss on areas for future technical assistance and collaboration in fields of quarantine system, disease control measures and laboratory staff training. The team will assess the existing capacity of BAFRA and would recommend further capacity building in terms of human resource training and other infrastructure development based on their excellent infrastructure and technical expertise, he added.
The team also met Agriculture Secretary Sherub Gyaltshen to discuss about quality and safety of food products. Gyalthen informed them that the ministry has a plan to set up a beef processing facility in the border area to maintain food quality and safe human health. The imported beef from India does not have standard processing, he added. He said that the Ministry is also looking forward to develop eco-tourism, although the number of visiting tourists has reduced as compared to the past.
They discussed about poverty and also street dogs. Dr. Yukol said that the street dogs could be one of the reasons for the reduced number of visiting tourists. The team was informed about the sterilization program in Thimphu being carried out through Humane Society International (HIS), India which has covered sterilizing around 40% of dogs.
During their one week stay, the team will be visiting Punakha, Bumthang and Trongsa.