Agri-exports rise 13% on better productivity

Farmers asked to adopt new technologies, look for quality seeds for further growth

LAHORE:

Pakistan’s agricultural exports rose 13% to $5.2 billion in financial year 2022-23, thanks to improved productivity, better prices and increased demand in the global market, said the Pakistan Business Forum (PBF).

For further boosting shipments, “We may also invest in modernising our agriculture sector by adopting new technologies, enhancing water management, improving seed quality, expanding cultivated land for high-value crops, strengthening linkages between processors and growers, and providing incentives for agro-processing,” it said.

PBF Vice President Jahan Ara Wattoo emphasised that foreign direct investment (FDI) in corporate farming had the potential to greatly benefit the agriculture sector by staving off the threat of food insecurity besides meeting food staple needs of people.

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Speaking to a delegation of progressive farmers, Wattoo said Pakistan was in dire need of FDI to improve its foreign exchange reserves and bridge the investment gap. “Such investments are crucial for boosting the agricultural and industrial production, which can lead to job creation, increase in exports and the generation of tax revenues,” she added.

Wattoo pointed out that several countries, like India and Indonesia, went for public-private partnerships with foreign partners to ramp up local production of high-yielding seeds.

This initiative will enhance Pakistan’s crop productivity and farm income by ensuring the availability of affordable, high-yielding seeds. “Such partnerships side-step the complex and lengthy process of developing new cultivars,” she said.

Expanding the country’s cultivated area through corporate farming can also increase oilseed production, which will save a huge amount of foreign exchange.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, October 19^th, 2023.

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