PRIME Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that his government would send 1,000 graduates to China to acquire the latest training in the field of agriculture, adding that the target of Pakistan’s agricultural exports has been fixed at $7 billion for the current fiscal year. Speaking as the chief guest at the inauguration of the second International Food and Agriculture Expo during his day-long visit to Karachi on Friday, he acknowledged China’s advancement in the farming sector through the use of the latest technology.
Right policies and the use of modern technology have helped China develop its agriculture sector in an all round manner as it is the world’s top producer of many agricultural products. Agricultural productivity has increased and it now produces one-fourth of the world’s grain while feeding one-fifth of the world’s population with less than 10% of the world’s arable land. Pakistan too has all the ingredients to become one of the leading agricultural countries of the globe as it has fertile land, a vast irrigation network and versatile climatic conditions. There is no doubt that the country has generally been able to feed its surging population during the last seven decades but the real potential remains untapped due to lack of attention on research, use of high yielding seed, adoption of modern farming tactics and use of proper implements. It is a matter of regret that the per acre yield of various crops is one of the lowest in Pakistan. We hope training of the one thousand graduates in China would go a long way in changing the landscape of the agriculture in Pakistan but much depends on the proper use of the talent and allocation for necessary resources for modernization of the agriculture sector. Apart from China, the Government is also initiating moves to seek cooperation of Gulf countries in the development of the agriculture sector and success of these moves would help bring necessary investment for the purpose.
