As the cash-strapped nation struggles to emerge from a severe economic crisis, authorities have informed a parliamentary committee that China has expressed interest in importing donkeys and dogs from Pakistan.
Dinesh Kumar, a member of the Senate Standing Committee, said that China has shown interest in importing donkeys as well as dogs from Pakistan during a briefing on imports and exports between the officials of the Ministry of Commerce and Geo News on Monday.
Additionally, Senator Abdul Qadir told the committee that the Chinese envoy had brought up the topic of Pakistani meat exports multiple times.
One of the committee members also advised that Pakistan acquire livestock from Afghanistan and export the meat to China because livestock is relatively cheaper there.
The committee was informed by representatives of the trade ministry, nevertheless, that imports of animals from Afghanistan are now prohibited due to reports of lumpy skin conditions in animals living in the neighboring nation.
The reason for China’s significant interest in donkeys is that the animal’s skin is used to make "eijao,” or donkey-hide gelatin, which is allegedly therapeutic and has historically been used to replenish the blood and boost the immune system.
With 5.7 million animals, Pakistan has the third-largest population of donkeys in the world and has previously transported the animals to China.
The Punjab government established a donkey farm on more than 3,000 acres in the Punjab province’s Okara district last year intending to export donkeys to supplement the nation’s depleting foreign exchange reserves.
