As part of the ongoing scientific collaboration among higher education institutions, Professor Dr. Abdul-Zahra Jabbar Ali, Head of the Department of Food Sciences at the College of Agriculture – University of Kerbala, represented our college in the scientific symposium entitled “The Reality of Alien and Invasive Animal Species: Between Environmental Risks and Economic Opportunities”. The event was organized by the Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research / Department of Research and Development, in cooperation with the Center for Research and the Natural History Museum – University of Baghdad, on Thursday, May 8, 2025.
The symposium was held in line with national efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly those related to environmental and sustainability themes (Life on Land, Life Below Water, Responsible Consumption and Production, Quality Education, and Partnerships for the Goals). The event witnessed wide academic and research participation from various Iraqi universities and featured a series of specialized lectures on invasive animal species that have penetrated the Iraqi environment, such as the giant African snail, the screwworm fly, the black widow spider, the red palm weevil, and the African catfish. These species pose a direct threat to biodiversity and ecological balance.
Objectives of the Symposium:
• Monitoring the spread of invasive species in Iraq
• Highlighting their environmental and economic risks
• Developing mechanisms to limit their spread and studying their impact on native species
Recommendations of the Symposium:
• Raising public awareness through workshops and scientific seminars
• Enhancing plant and animal quarantine procedures at border entry points
• Adopting biological control as an environmentally friendly option to combat these species
The participants praised the active scientific and academic role of the University of Kerbala, and particularly the College of Agriculture, in supporting environmental research and contributing to the development of sustainable scientific solutions to contemporary environmental challenges.
