Two years on, no sign of Rs4.8b dairy village

Ministry hands over the project to investment board to find interested parties.

KARACHI: Despite the passage of two years and an initial allocation of Rs1.5 billion, Sindh government’s plan to establish a dairy village and meat-processing zone – 60 kilometres from Karachi – has failed to start off.

The livestock ministry has handed the project over to Sindh Board of Investment to lure investors for the public-private partnership venture and raising rest of the capital, Minister for Livestock Abid Jatoi told The Express Tribune.

The budget 2010-11 estimated the total cost at Rs4.88 billion for the project located in Bhambhore district of Thatta and its completion by June 2013.

“It is a difficult task to lure investors for a project in the rural areas,” Sindh Board of Investment Chairman Muhammad Zubair Motiwala said.

“However, we have received a few applications from international investors and are in negotiating stages. I hope people will come to invest in this sector,” he said.

Motiwala further said that they had started work on the five-year project and established models to give investors the feel of the massive daily village that will be established over 1,300 acres.

Bhambhore has been selected due to the vast availability of grazing land in the surrounding areas where fodder is easily available.

The farm’s potential revenue is aimed at acting as trend setter for more such projects by the private sector for which the government will provide interest-free financing.

Pakistan is the third largest milk producer in the world with 36.3 tons of milk daily, according to a feasibility report prepared jointly by livestock officials and the Sindh Board of Investment.

Daily milk consumption stood at 36 million tons in 2009-10 with 61% contributed by buffalo milk and 33% from cow milk, according to data provided by livestock ministry.

The zone will be divided for dairy and meat production with more than 100 farms of five to ten acres.

Roads linking the village to the national highway joining Karachi to Thatta have also been planned.

“Around 47% of people in the rural area own livestock and 11% of their income is generated from this sector,” said Minister for Livestock Abid Jatoi adding that “promotion of the sector is not only for enrichment, but for creation of more livelihood resources”.

“This zone will have the first-ever processing zone that will increase the storage life of our consumer goods including milk and meat,” said Jatoi.

Only 3% of the total milk production is processed and marketed through the proper channel, he said.

Milk extraction, fodder markets, slaughter houses, meat proceeding zones, milk processing and cold storage units would be part of the dairy village.

He said that along with other facilities, breeding grounds for buffalos will be established to promote one of the most integral part of the domestic dairy industry.

Published in The Express Tribune, March 29^th, 2012.