Agri credit: Premier urges ZTBL to play greater role

PM said the ZTBL should prepare a scheme aimed at assisting small and medium farmers.

ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on Tuesday said that the government expected institutions like the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) to play a greater role in meeting liquidity requirements, particularly of small and medium farmers. The premier, in a meeting with ZTBL President Ehsanul Haq – who had called on him – said that the ZTBL had to play an important role by ensuring that the agriculture sector was facilitated in the provision of funds for agricultural inputs, and that the bank bridged financing shortfalls in times of hardship. He said the ZTBL should prepare a scheme aimed at assisting small and medium farmers. He hoped that the plan would help small farmers increase their per-acre yield, so that they could improve their standards of living through higher incomes.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 10^th, 2012.