Stakeholders Urge Creation of Veterinary Drugs Directorate Under DRAP

Rewritten news report for The Veterinary News & Views

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Key Concern: Pakistan’s veterinary drug regulations are under severe pressure as experts warn that the absence of a dedicated Veterinary Directorate in DRAP threatens food security, export quality and disease control.

LAHORE: Pakistan’s veterinary pharmaceutical industry is facing an escalating regulatory gap due to the lack of a dedicated Veterinary Drugs Directorate within the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan (DRAP). Sector representatives warn that the issue has now become directly linked to national food safety and livestock health.

Retired Maj Syed Javed Hussain Bukhari, spokesperson for the Pakistan Veterinary Pharmaceutical Association (PVPA), stated that the regulatory vacuum has allowed counterfeit and substandard veterinary medicines to circulate freely. He cautioned that the unchecked spread of deadly livestock diseases is now posing serious risks to both food security and export opportunities.

Industry Scale: The veterinary sector is valued above Rs14 trillion annually, with over 500,000 livestock farms and more than 1,000 manufacturing units.

Mr Bukhari noted that such a massive sector is currently operating under what he described as “weak, unscientific and generalized regulations,” leaving farmers and manufacturers vulnerable.

He explained that advanced nations such as the United States, United Kingdom, European states and China maintain separate and fully empowered regulatory authorities for both veterinary and human medicines. In these countries, veterinary scientists, public health specialists and technical experts contribute at every step—from policy creation to drug approval and quality monitoring.

This scientific approach, he said, has resulted in globally recognized standards for disease control, drug quality and export performance.

In Pakistan, all legal and technical functions for both human and veterinary drugs fall under a single regulatory body—DRAP—leading to stagnation and limited oversight in the veterinary domain.

Urgent Recommendation:
Establishing an independent, fully empowered Veterinary Directorate—with research and quality control capacity—is essential for protecting animal health, food production and export competitiveness.

Mr Bukhari emphasized that such a directorate would help align Pakistan’s food safety system, public health framework and livestock economy with international standards.

He warned that failure to implement immediate reforms could expose Pakistan’s economy, food supply chain and millions of livelihoods to severe and potentially irreversible risks.

He added that the window for effective reform is rapidly shrinking, urging policymakers to prioritize veterinary regulation as a national food security issue.