October (Khyber Mail): In Mardan, the Department of Entomology at Abdul Wali Khan University Mardan (AWKUM) recently hosted a one-day seminar in collaboration with CABI Pakistan office and the Office of Research, Innovation, and Commercialization (ORIC) at AWKUM. The seminar, titled “CABI Digital Tools: Introduction and Awareness Session for Faculty and Students Capacity Building,” aimed to equip attendees with essential knowledge about utilizing digital tools in agriculture.
Faculty members and students from various departments at AWKUM participated in the seminar, focusing on enhancing their capacity to leverage digital resources for reducing crop losses and increasing agricultural productivity. Dr. Muhammad Naeem Aslam, Country Coordinator for the Plantwise Plus Program at CABI Pakistan Office, served as the resource person.
During the session, Dr. Aslam introduced CABI’s mandate, objectives, and the significance of the CABI Plantwise Plus program. This program plays a crucial role in poverty reduction, food security enhancement, and livelihood improvement for small landholders. Dr. Aslam also highlighted several digital resources and tools available to faculty and students, including CAB Abstracts, CABI Knowledge Bank, CABI Courses Academy, and other online platforms—all accessible free of cost.
The seminar represents a significant step toward promoting digital agriculture and empowering AWKUM’s academic community with cutting-edge tools. As the event concluded, Prof. Dr. Asad Ali, Chairman of the Department of Entomology, expressed gratitude, and certificates were distributed to participants by Prof. Asad Ali, Dr. Naeem Aslam, and Prof. Dr. Zahid Hussain, Dean of the Faculty of Chemical and Life Sciences.
This initiative underscores AWKUM’s commitment to staying at the forefront of agricultural education and research, leveraging technology to address contemporary challenges in the field.