During the COVID-19 lockdown, all the field activities ceased. However, the Small Ruminant team have stayed connected with farmers by phone.
1. The team has collected information about how animals were traded at Eid, and what was the effect of COVID 19 on farmers during the selling and buying animals on Eid
2. The team has followed up registered farmers of Punjab and Sindh in a Longitudinal Health Monitoring study. These phone calls collected updates about the current situation of their animals (mortality, disease status, and any other observations).
3. The team has also translated the Nossal institute COVID-19 Survey in Sindhi and Urdu languages. Nossal institute COVID-19 survey is an online survey developed by the Nossal Institute of Global Health to report how COVID-19 has affected the economic situation, health and wellbeing of people.
4. The team also conducted phone interviews with14 stakeholders* to exchange project updates about the past and current activities of Small Ruminants and other stakeholders engaged with Small Ruminant Project. Topics included: how COVID-19 have affected their work, how they are dealing with this situation, what the strategies they have made to continue or to shift their work. The data helped identify the opportunities to work together in future and to know their expectation regarding Small Ruminants research activities.
* Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Potohar Organization for Development Advocacy ( PODA), Sindh Agricultural and Forestry Workers Coordinating Organization (SAFWCO), Market Development Facility (MDF), Management & Development Foundation (MDF), livestock departments Punjab and Sindh, Australian Assistance to Agricultural Development in Balochistan Border Areas (AUSAABA), UPTRADE, Sindh Agriculture University (SAU), University of Veterinary Animal Sciences Lahore(UVAS), Entrepreneurship and Community Development Institute (ECDI), International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and ACIAR Pulses project)
