BIOSECURITY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAM HELPS STRENGTHEN S&T

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 ISLAMABAD 002979

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: TBIO PTER TSPL ETTC PK
SUBJECT: BIOSECURITY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAM HELPS STRENGTHEN S&T
COLLABORATION IN PAKISTAN

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1. (SBU) Summary: The Biosecurity Engagement Program team's second
visit to Pakistan June 12-23 further strengthened the collaboration
on the Science and Technology Agreement, part of the Strategic
Dialogue between Pakistan and the U.S. The team met with high-level
GOP officials and various members of Pakistan's scientific community
over the two-week visit which included four bio-safety and security
workshops that trained over 700 scientists and lab workers. Each
meeting elicited common needs from various sectors of the scientific
community, as well as concerns that there had been little movement
on the S&T dialogue since the first high-level committee meeting in
Washington in February. The team hopes to establish a program office
in Islamabad in order to move quickly on funding programs to build
Pakistan's bio-safety and security capacity. End Summary

24 MEETINGS AND 4 WORKSHOPS IN 8 DAYS
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2. (U) On June 12, Jason Rao and Kendra Chittenden from ISN/CTR,
Martha Mummey and Muquarrab Qureshi from USDA, and Steven Clark from
EPA began a whirlwind round of meetings with representatives from
the Ministries of Health (MOH),Environment, Science and Technology
(MOST),and Food, Agriculture and Livestock (MINFAL). In addition,
they met with scientists from Pakistan Agricultural Research Council
(PARC); Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR);
Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR). In
Lahore they met with the Centers for Excellence in Microbiology;
King Edward Medical University; University of Veterinary and Animal
Sciences; Institute of Public Health; Veterinary Research Institute
and Aga Khan University in Karachi.


3. (U) The Biosecurity Engagement Program (BEP) team was joined by
Reynolds Salerno of Sandia National Labs, Robert Hawley of the
American Biological Safety Association, and Joseph Kozlovac of USDA
to conduct bio-safety and security workshops from June 18 to 21.
Over 700 scientists and lab workers attended the four separate
workshops conducted in Islamabad and Karachi. Participation was
lively, the questions insightful, and all agreed the workshops were
a success.

LABS IN DESPERATE NEED OF TRAINING AND EQUIPMENT
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4. (SBU) The BEP team was able to visit several labs, most of which
were inadequately handling the deadly pathogens housed there. The
tuberculosis lab at King Edward Medical University contained
multi-drug resistant (MDR) tuberculosis virus that was being handled
without proper bio-safety techniques, such as gloves, masks and lab
coats. The situation at the Veterinary Research Institute (VRI) was
slightly better. VRI produces 21 different animal vaccines,
including H5N1 (the most highly-pathogenic variant of avian
influenza) and anthrax. Even though they have bio-safety level two
(BSL2) capabilities, it is still considered inadequate given the
toxicity of the pathogens housed there. The BEP team invited
representatives from each of these labs to the workshops and donated
personal protective equipment (PPE) to the lab at King Edward
Medical University.

COMMON THEMES
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5. (SBU) There were four common themes that ran through the
meetings with both government and science representatives:

-- Training - every Ministry and scientific institution said it was
critical that Pakistani scientists have the ability to train for
three to six months at labs in the U.S., in addition to bringing
U.S. scientists to Pakistan to lecture students and train lab
personnel.

-- Guidance - government representatives and the scientific

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community requested help in drafting appropriate laws, lab
protocols, bio-safety guidelines, and designing BSL3 labs.

-- Capacity building - everyone the team met with requested help
with capacity building. This includes infrastructure, such as
better water and sewer pipes to prevent the contamination of
drinking water, and lab equipment.

-- Public/private partnerships - the scientific community was very
aware that the government cannot provide for all their needs and
that the key is to build partnerships with corporations with an
interest in developing Pakistan as an outsourcing market for
research, development and production.

PAKISTAN CONCERNED OVER PACE OF PROGRESS
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6. (SBU) During meetings with officials from MOH, MOST and MINFAL,
concerns were raised at the pace of progress in the S&T dialogue.
The Pakistanis believed they had presented several areas of
potential collaboration that were still awaiting U.S. response. Rao
highlighted the work his team had done in training lab workers, and
the fact that he had brought a water expert, Clark, to consult with
PCRWR on ways to improve Pakistan's drinking water, fulfilling the
agreement for training and collaboration. During the discussion of
next steps, each Ministry requested assistance from the U.S. with
road maps and time tables.

COMMENT
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7. (SBU) It was clear from the meetings that the GOP and the
Pakistani scientific community have high hopes for the S&T dialogue;
however they have concerns about the pace of progress. Although the
BEP team does not technically fall under the S&T dialogue agreement,
the work they are doing is furthering scientific collaboration and
exchange. Rao intends to explore the possibility of establishing a
program office in Islamabad in order to facilitate funding of
projects which meet BEP goals in Pakistan. Post will work closely
with Rao on this project in addition to highlighting areas where the
S&T dialogue is progressing. End Comment

Patterson