ATHENS, Ga., Oct. 25 (AScribe Newswire) -- Attending the First International Veterinary Conference in Kuwait City, Keith W. Prasse, dean of the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, participated in strategic discussions to aid Iraq and Afghanistan in rebuilding veterinary education and services in the two war-torn nations.
During the three-day conference, held in late September and titled "Partners in Animal Health and Vision for the Future," Prasse participated in the discussion with two other U.S. deans selected by the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges and about 50 other veterinarians representing Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait and the U.S.
Prasse presented information to the conferees about research and post-graduate opportunities and requirements in the United States, while other American presenters talked about veterinary college curricula, opportunities for training veterinarians and scientific exchange programs. Representatives from Iraq and Afghanistan outlined their problems and their needs for reviving veterinary medicine in their countries.
"The bulk of the meeting consisted of small groups working on a strategic plan for what could be done to help rebuild veterinary education and practice in Iraq and Afghanistan," said Prasse. "We came up with short and long-term goals, and discussed possible ways of funding the activities that were planned."
According to Prasse, Iraq has seven established schools of veterinary medicine. Students receive their professional degree after five years of post-high school education, but they have few if any jobs available when they graduate. Historically veterinary services were provided free to society and funded by the government.
"In Iraq the faculty are 25 years out of date because Saddam cut them off from the rest of the scientific world when he came to power in 1979," Prasse said. "They're dealing with destruction and inadequate energy supplies, and obviously security is a problem, but their infrastructure and supplies are in reasonably good shape. What's missing there mainly is planning to reestablish services."
In Afghanistan students can attend two existing schools of veterinary medicine or a veterinary science department in an agricultural college, but employment is hard to find for these students as well, Prasse explained.
"Afghanistan is literally rubble. They have one hour's worth of electricity per day. We were told that although their veterinary college was rebuilt and two labs constructed with the help of funds from Japan and Italy, the building has no furniture, nothing on the walls, nothing on the floors, no reagents, no instruments, no library, nothing," Prasse said. "According to some Afghan conferees, before the Taliban they had 75 faculty members. Today they have 10. The rest were killed in the wars. Yet they still have classes," he continued.
The Afghans are more advanced than Iraqi veterinarians with their planning, although they're starting from a lower level to reestablish veterinary education and services, according to Prasse. "They know what they want, they know what their policies are, and they know where they're going - they're looking toward establishing free enterprise in their veterinary profession," he said.
As a follow-up to the conference, Prasse will help identify agencies that might be approached for financial support to help develop veterinary education opportunities in Iraq and Afghanistan.
He will also procure information for representatives of Iraq and Afghanistan on developing policies and procedures for the kind of sanitary poultry processing used in U.S. processing plants.
"The people of Iraq and Afghanistan are in desperate need of more animal protein in their diets, and veterinary medicine is extremely essential to help them protect their animal resources from endemic diseases," said Prasse.
"As a representative of The University of Georgia I'm pleased to have been asked to participate in this endeavor along with the deans from the University of Missouri and the University of California-Davis. I hope we were able to help them move forward with their plans."
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