Chinese Company to Build FMD Vaccine Production Plant in Kyrgyzstan

China’s Yangling Jinhai Biotechnology Co., Ltd. plans to build a plant in Kyrgyzstan to produce foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) vaccines, according to the country’s Ministry of Water Resources, Agriculture, and Processing Industry. The announcement followed a meeting between Kyrgyzstan’s Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers and Minister of Water Resources, Agriculture, and Processing Industry, Bakyt Torobaev, and a delegation from the Chinese company. The project includes the entire production cycle, from raising and fattening livestock to vaccination and slaughtering. Yangling Jinhai Biotechnology Co., Ltd. is ready to invest in plant construction, transfer advanced technologies, and train local specialists. The parties agreed to establish a working group to implement the project. According to the World Organization for Animal Health,FMD is a severe and highly contagious viral livestock disease with a significant economic impact. It is a transboundary animal disease that profoundly affects livestock production and disrupts regional and international trade in animals and animal products. The parties emphasized the project's importance for strengthening Kyrgyzstan’s veterinary security, as domestically produced vaccines would significantly reduce the spread of infectious diseases among farm animals. Kyrgyzstan is an agricultural country, and livestock farming is the country's primary source of income for its rural population. In September 2024, the Ministry of Water Resources, Agriculture and Processing Industry reported that Kyrgyzstan had 1,802,299 head of cattle (cows), 542,527 horses, 6,216,125 sheep and goats, 6,988,968 poultry, and 29,676 pigs.

Turkmenistan To Harness Technology and Algae to Combat Desertification

The International Scientific and Technological Park of the Academy of Sciences of Turkmenistan has received the copyright for the innovative development of nanocomposite material technologies based on blue-green algae (cyanobacteria). The development - which can improve eroded sandy and desert lands in dry steppe and desert zones - is designed to control desertification, wind erosion, and sand migration. This material can also be used as a raw material for producing construction materials and bio-products, which opens up a wide range of opportunities for its use. “Movable bare sands cause significant damage to the national economy, often covering agricultural lands, rivers, water bodies, canals, transportation highways, irrigation facilities and other objects. Therefore, controlling wind erosion and fixing sand are important tasks. We have proposed an effective way to combat desertification using blue-green algae (cyanobacteria),” said Altyn Rakhmanova, Head of the Biotechnology Department of ANT International Science and Technology Park. Cyanobacteria play a crucial role in soil improvement by participating in biochemical processes, accumulating substances and nitrogen, and destroying minerals. Their vital activity contributes to environmental changes and soil formation, especially by forming various overgrowths on its surface. Turkmenistan is actively combating land degradation following the UN Convention to Combat Desertification and the National Action Program to Combat Desertification (NAPCD), which includes reforestation. In May 2024, the State Program for Integrated Development of Biotechnology in the Country for 2024-2028 was approved; one of the plans is to study and apply algae. The application of biotechnology for the development of new materials offers a promising and effective solution.