International Engagement to Enhance Global Food Security: An Example in the Republic of Kosova

Abstract

Since 2011, personnel at Iowa State University (ISU) have been engaged with the southeastern European country of the Republic of Kosova (more commonly known as Kosovo). The purpose of this engagement has been to empower Kosovars to transform their agricultural sector so that this newly independent country can reduce its reliance on food imports and develop into a food secure nation. Activities conducted under terms of the international memorandum of cooperation and understanding between ISU and the University of Prishtina (UP) are described in this report. Accomplishments resulting from this partnership include: 1) guest lectures by ISU faculty to UP veterinary students, 2) teaching of workshops and courses by ISU faculty to a global population of students enrolled in UP’s International Summer University 2-week educational program, 3) on-farm consultations with Kosovo dairy farmers, 4) establishment of relationships with livestock-oriented associations in Kosovo, and 5) birth of the first-ever bovine embryo transfer calf in Kosovo. These and other on-going activities are heightening awareness of the need to improve agricultural productivity in Kosovo, particularly in the dairy sector, to stop the flow of euros out of the country for purchase of food that could and should be produced within Kosovo.