Pakistani govt taking measures to benefit from Chinese experience, expertise in agriculture and livestock: Food Minister
Islamabad: Pakistani Minister for National Food Security and Research Tariq Bashir Cheema has said that the government was taking measures to benefit from the Chinese experience and expertise in agriculture and livestock,
Speaking at a news conference here, the minister maintained that an agreement for the buffalo breed improvement with China was finalized. “China is the biggest importer of beef and we requested them to establish farms in Pakistan that would help to develop the local livestock sector as well,” he added.
To a question, the minister informed that government was taking steps to ensure availability of quality seeds and pesticides and finalized negotiations with Monsanto company.
He mentioned that work on the agriculture cooperation under second-phase of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project in livestock and research was also finalized.
“A special task force is being formed to take the input of all the stakeholders to make the agriculture sector more viable and strong,” he remarked.
The minister observed that barter trade with Iran, which was suspended for last two years was also restored and first consignment of apples would arrive here during current month and mangoes from Pakistan would be exported to Iran.
“A full trade would be resumed by September as about 100,000 tons of rice will be exported to Iran,” he further said.
Besides, he underlined that bottlenecks in transit-trade were also removed to enhance trade with regional countries, particularly the trade in agriculture produces to promote local agriculture and livestock sectors.
The minister said that government was evolving a mechanism by taking all the provinces on board to ensure uninterrupted supply of fertilizers on affordable rates, besides discouraging the hoarding and black marketing of the commodity.
Cheema informed that government would provide special incentives to promote oil seeds cultivation in the country as he said it was consuming about US $ 4.5 billion annually, which was expected to reach US $ 6 billion by next year.
He noted that over 1.2 million agriculture tubewells would be switched to solar energy to reduce input cost and enhance farm income, particularly that of the small land holders.
He highlighted that a task force was being formed to finalize modalities and engage commercial banks to finance the facility. Under the facility, the farmers would have to repay the loans in installments up to three years, he added.
Cheema said, the initiative has been taken on the directives of Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, who has also asked for formulating short and long term policies to ensure tangible results in shortest possible time with focus on reviving agriculture sector for maintaining food safety and security as well as prosperity of farming communities.
While reaffirming the government’s commitment to ensure proper rate of return to the farmers for their produces as well as enhancing the output of all major and minor crops, he underscored that recommendation for cotton intervention price was finalized and put on agenda of next meeting of Cabinet for approval.
He said that the initiative was aiming at encouraging the farmers to bring maximum areas under cultivation of this crop of vital importance, adding that area under crop sowing during last season reduced by 37 percent, which was replaced by rice, maize and sugarcane.
Cheema mentioned that the government was also keen to announce minimum support price for wheat before the start of the sowing season in order to encourage farmers to sow more wheat for attaining self-sufficiency in staple grains production and reduce reliance on imported wheat and edible oil that were enhancing pressure on much needed foreign exchange reserves.
He emphasized that the government was aware of rising inflation and the problems being faced by the common man in the country, adding that steps were taken to protect them from the inflationary pressures.
