Technology: The Missing Link in

Pakistans Agriculture Sector

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 By Zahid Baig
The higher cost of production has continuously been haunting the farmer
community in Pakistan. This, together with climate change impact, has been
resulting in poor produce and negative growth rates at times. This article is an
attempt to explore the possibilities of employing technology to achieve cost
effectiveness and to help farmers to improve outcomes.

In Brief

Agriculture sector of Pakistan contributes one-fifth to the countrys overall GDP. In the
world ranking, the country is number 4 in cotton production and number 9 in wheat
production. There is a huge potential in the agriculture industry which is crying out for
exploitation and investments. Experts suggest maximum measures including the use of
technology to achieve ultimate boost for the benefit of all.

The cost of production remains a big challenge for growers in Pakistan. The need is to
explore possibilities as to how technology could be used to overcome this and other related
issues.

Climate change is now a global phenomenon. It is another threat to agriculture in Pakistan

like many other countries. We have all the more reason to speed up our efforts to introduce
climate change tolerant seeds. The efforts to devise plan to mitigate the damages by floods
or drought also need to be accelerated.

Agriculture sector is the mainstay of Pakistans economy as it contributes around

20 percent in the overall gross domestic product (GDP) which stands for the
total value of all final goods and services produced within the economy during a
certain period- and is also a big source of employment. It helps meet the food
requirement of ever increasing population, providing raw materials to all the
major industrial sectors including textiles, leather, sugar, flour milling etc., and
has a significant role in decreasing rural poverty.

As per Economic Survey of Pakistan (ESP 2015-16), out of total contribution of

agriculture to the GDP major crops contribute 4.67 percent to the GDP, other
crops 2.25 percent, livestock 11.61 percent, fisheries 0.43 percent and forestry
0.41 percent each.
This sector also provides 65 percent of the total exports of Pakistan. Further
breakdown shows 73.2 percent is cotton and cotton based products while fruit,
rice, livestock and others contribute 26.8 percent.

As per the ESP 2015-16, the agriculture sector provides employment to 42.3
percent of the countrys total labor force while in Punjab it provides employment
to 43.5 percent of the people in the province, and to more than 61 percent in the
rural areas.

And when Pakistan is compared with the rest of the world on the basis of
agriculture sector, the country ranks 9th in wheat production, 11th in rice
production with an edge of having aromatic long grain basmati, 4th in cotton
production, and 14th in sugarcane with comparative advantage in mango, citrus
and dates. Similarly, in livestock it is 2nd in buffalos population, 13th in cattle, and
9th in sheep and 3rd in goat while in milk production Pakistans standing is at
4th place in the world. These figures are based on the report Future Direction of
Agricultural Diversification by Dr. Azeem Khan, Director General of National
Agricultural Research Center (NARC), Islamabad.
SOURCE: REPORT THE FUTURE DIRECTION OF AGRICULTURAL
DIVERSIFICATION BY DR. AZEEM KHAN, NATIONAL AGRICULTURAL
RESEARCH CENTRE (NARC) DG, ISLAMABAD.

Despite all of these amazing numbers, the agriculture sector, which has
traditionally sustained a satisfactory growth to ensure food security for our
growing population, presently faces a major challenge of low returns to farmers
because of higher costs of production. The reasons behind, among many, are
uncertified seeds, counterfeit or substandard pesticides and herbicides resulting
in low yields of some crops especially cottonwhich is the main cash crop and
provides raw material for the biggest export sector of the country i.e., textiles.

The year 2015-16 saw dismal performance of the agriculture sector when it
registered negative growth of 0.19 percent against 2.53 percent of the same
period in last fiscal year. The last negative growth in agriculture was witnessed by
the country in year 2000-01. (ESP 2015-16)

Read more: Pakistan at Risk

In recent times, many farmer organizations have staged protests on the

roads time and again against the expensive inputs and have demanded decrease
in the prices of fertilizers, fuel and electricity charges for agricultural purposes,
provision of high quality disease-resistant seeds and a better per acre yield.

Declining international prices had hit hard the wheat growers, rice and cotton
farmers while unfortunately our cotton sector witnessed a huge downward trend
because of the poor cotton seed especially the so-called Bt cotton seed introduced
to the growers through informal sectors. Bt stands for Bacillus thuringiensis, a
bacterium that produces toxins harmful to a variety of insects, including
bollworms that attack cotton. Bt cotton was created by introducing genes from
the bacterium into the cotton seed, creating a crop resistant to this pest.
This calls for well-thought out interventions to improve agriculture products
value addition at the farm levels and industrial linkages, especially under the
existing situation, when the agricultural commodities returns do not equal the
increasing cost of production. A vibrant industrial sector understanding of these
challenges are required to support the farm sector.

Rice
Rice is the second largest staple food crop of Pakistan and is also one of the major
export earning commodities for the country. As per official statistics, it accounts
for 3.1 percent in the value added in agriculture and 0.6 percent of GDP. In the
year 2014-15, rice export earned foreign exchange of $1.53 billion.

As far as production and area under cultivation is concerned, during the year
2015-2016, rice was cultivated on an area of 2,748 thousand hectares showing a
decrease of 4.9 percent over last years area of 2,891. It was slightly lower than
the area brought under cultivation during the year 2013-14 when it was planted
over 2,789 thousand hectares. Rice production remained at 6,811 thousand tons,
showing a decline of 2.7 percent over corresponding period of last years record
production of 7,003 thousand tons.

Reduction in rice production and area under cultivation is the result of less
economic returns to the farmers on account of decline in rice prices both
domestically and internationally. According to the official sources, the growers
opted to turn to fodder and maize instead of sowing rice which was not bringing
them good returns for the last two to three years.

According to Basmati Growers Association (BGA) Chairman Chaudhry Hamid

Malhi major area of concern for rice growers in Pakistan is the falling prices.
Cost of production is continuing to rise from last seven to eight years while
prices of the commodity is consecutively coming down, he says and adds
international prices of the Basmati rice, the aromatic long grain rice variety, came
down to $800 per tons from $1,400 per ton some two years back.
Malhi is of the view that yield, as far as rice is concerned, is not an issue for
Pakistan rather enhancing its production would cause more glut in the market.
Nevertheless, he suggests that the government should make ensuring income to
farmer as cornerstone of its policy. According to him, input cost of rice has
doubled during last couple of years while cost of fertilizer, water, pesticide and
other expenses are also on the rise. He also suggests the government should also
try to create new windows of exports for rice and help the exporters in this
regard.

On our part, we have recently met the Indian Rice Exporters Association and
also the growers to ensure and maintain some reasonable price level of aromatic
basmati rice for the international buyers, he adds.

Gujranwala Chamber of Commerce and Industry (GCCI) President, Rice Miller

and former Vice President of the Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan Sami
Ullah Chaudhry says the government should strive to provide high quality
certified rice seeds with more per acre yield to the growers. He is for making
research institutions more effective and active so that they provide seeds which
have the capacity to produce more. He also stresses the need for creating linkages
between academia, research institutes and other stakeholders. If we have better
seeds from our local research institutes then farmers will not go for any imported
hybrid seeds, he remarks.
SOURCE: PAKISTAN ECONOMIC SURVEY 2015-16

About maintaining the long grain aromatic basmati rice export, Sami Ullah
Chaudhry says the government should take advantage of Iran market in this
regard. According to him Iran is the biggest importer of long grain aromatic rice
while India has taken it away from Pakistani exporters. We need to have a
currency exchange mechanism between both the countries to capture this
market, he stresses.

Wheat
Wheat is the most favorite staple food crop of Pakistan as it dominates all other
crops in terms of area under cultivation and production. It alone accounts for 2
percent of the GDP. During the season 2015-16 its area under plantation
increased to 9,260,000 hectares from the corresponding period of 9,204,000
hectares showing an increase of 0.6 percent. While the production of the grain
registered an increase of 1.6 percent as total harvest was recorded at 25.482
million tons in 2015-16 against 25.086 million tons of the corresponding period.
The issue for the growers of this crop always remains that they do not get due
return of their labor. Though the government announces support price every year
but every season remains full of complaint from all quarters representing growers
who claim they are not being entertained on procurement centers like influential
landlords.

Farooq Bajwa, an agronomist and representative of one of the most powerful

growers organizationthe Farmers Associates of Pakistan (FAP) says out of the
total production in Punjab, which produces 80 percent of the total wheat grains,
growers keep almost 8 million tons for their domestic use and as seed for the next
crop while remaining 10 million tons is available to the buyers. The major buyer
of the wheat in Pakistan is the Punjab Food Department and other government
procurement agencies like Pakistan Agricultural Storage and Services
Corporation (PASSCO).

Farooq further said even this year the growers could not get the announced PKR
1,300 per 40 KGs wheat support price because of the delayed entrance of the
government procurement agencies and on average growers could earn PKR 1,150
per 40 KGs of their producedepriving the growers from estimated PKR 40 to 45
billion. According to him now growers have only one recourse, i.e., to reduce area
under its cultivation to control the production. Or government should export the
surplus wheat, he adds.

However, we should make it clear to the international market that our produce
has the highest ratio of protein in the world (i.e., 12 percent while U.S. wheat has
only 9.5 per cent protein content). He also adds, higher protein value should
fetch higher returns for local growers.
Cotton
Cotton is the most important cash crop of Pakistan which has also a larger share
in the exports. Nevertheless, the countrys cotton production declined by a
whopping 33 percent as 9.48 million bales have been produced during 2015
against 14.25 million bales during the same period of last year. Abnormal
weather, seed quality, pests and disease and low prices are said to have negatively
impacted cotton production. In Punjab, cotton production declined by 44 percent
while in Sindh by 4 percent.

Cotton Commissioner Pakistan Dr. Khalid Abdullah during a recent briefing to a

high level meeting had said that Cotton Crop Assessment Committee (CCAC) has
downward revised the cotton estimates to 10.85 million for the current season
against the initial estimates of 15.49 million bales.

According to him Punjab was projected to produce 10.5 million bales, however
after the pink bollworm and whitefly attacks, cotton crop was badly damaged and
the projection was revised downward to 7.4 million bales. Sindh was projected to
produce 4.4 million bales; however the projected estimate was revised downward
to 3.4 million bales following similar attacks. The government had set a target of
15.489 million bales from 3.122 million hectares; however cotton was planted on
2.946 million hectares and missed the target by 0.47 percent.

Dr. Zafar Hayat, a progressive cotton farmer and convener on FAPs cotton
committee terming the uncertified, counterfeit pesticides and herbicides as
reasons of decline in cotton output says the government should ensure supply of
good quality Bt cotton seeds, lowering the input cost and carry out a stern action
against the seed mafia which is responsible for the downfall of cotton crop. He is
of the view that embracing new technologies both in seeds and herbicides can
ensure better yields and better returns to the growers.

Read more: Agriculture: Through the Ages in Pakistan

Sugarcane
Sugarcane is another high value cash crop of Pakistan which accounts for 3.2
percent in agricultures value addition and 0.6 percent in overall GDP. During
2015-16, the area sown for sugarcane crop stood at 1,132 thousand hectares
showing a decline of 0.8 percent while its production for the year 2015-16
increased to 65.5 million tons from 62.8 million tons of last years production
showing an increase of 4.2 percent.

Though, it is feeding the sugar and sugar-related industries, but the growers
organizations always complain about the timely disposal of their cane and later
the timely payments from the industrialists to the growers. Because of cotton
shock and falling prices, it is hoped that growers may turn to sugarcane this year.
Pakistan is having surplus sugar production but lower international prices again
create impediments in the way of export of the surplus production. The sugar
industry demands subsidy and usually makes it an excuse for non-payment that
they would only be able to pay the growers after disposal of their stocks produced
from the sugarcane.

FAP Director Farooq Bajwa and Kissan Board Pakistan (KBP) Secretary
Information Haji Muhammad Ramzan are of the view that the government
should pay attention towards the chronic issue of untimely payments and even
defaults. They suggest that the Cane Procurement Receipt (CPR) should be made
as a promissory note or given status of check for payments, which may help
discourage the influential mill owners from holding the payments of the growers
for too long.
Corn
Maize or Corn, contributes 2.2 percent to the value added sector in agriculture
and 0.4 percent to GDP. During 2015-16, Maize was cultivated on an area of 1,144
thousand hectares, showing an increase of 0.2 percent over last years area of
1,142 thousand hectares. Introduction of hybrid seed has played a significant role
in enhancing the corn production in Pakistan.

Nevertheless, growers are of the view that the government should encourage
more and more industrial buyers to make use of maize thereby increasing corn
production. They argue that in presence of only two major players for extracting
edible oil or making other products of it, there is less chance of having reasonable
prices. The third biggest buyer is the poultry feed industries. They are of the view
that these players determine the price of corn but if more and more players come
into the field to extract corn oil which is second after olive oil, farmers can get
better price.

Another suggestion is that since maize is considered third biggest food source in
the world the government should create an export window for this crop.
Vegetables
Other important crops include Potatoes, Chilies and Onions which grew
positively during the year 2015-16 as the growers brought more area under
cultivation of these crops as compared to the corresponding periods. However,
again the price instability and availability of good quality seeds are the problems
being faced by the growers. The production of Sorghum (Jawar) and Millet
(Bajra) during 2015-16 witnessed positive growth of 40.0 percent and 1.4 percent
respectively due to increased area under cultivation. Gram crop, one of the
largest Rabi (winter sowing and spring harvest) crop in Pakistanaccounting for
the 76 percent of the total production of pulses in the country and occupying
about 5 percent of the Rabi cropped areawitnessed a decline of 17.7 percent as
the production of gram during last few years showed erratic trends due to heavy
dependence on rains. Similarly, the ESP 2015-16 shows a decrease in area under
cultivation of Barley, Rapeseed and Mustard.

Potato Growers Cooperative Association President Maqsood Ahmad Jutt also

complains that potato growers are not getting reasonable price for their labor.
We are having expense of PKR 130,000 to 135,000 per acre while the return is
negligible, he claims saying Pakistan is producing potatoes more than its needs.
He asserts that annual production of potatoes is around 6 million tons and
alleges that official claims of production of 3.5 million tons per annum is wrong.

Maqsood further says Pakistani potatoes are being exported to Russia and
Afghanistan adding the government should have a look for other markets too. He
calls for a formation of a Potato Board on the pattern of Tobacco Board
having representation of growers from all the provinces where it is cultivated,
including the finance minister and other stakeholders to create opportunities of
export for this crop.

Livestock
Livestock is the highest performing sub-sector of the agriculture industry as it
contributes nearly 58.6 percent to the agriculture value added segment and 11.6
percent to the overall GDP. Around 8 million families are attached with this
profession, deriving 35 percent or more income from livestock production. It is
considered a major player in rural poverty alleviation. Though, major crops have
not shown the growth this sector has shown. Pakistan, according to the ESP
2015-16, has 42.8 million cattle in year 2015-16 as compared to 41.2 million in
the corresponding year including buffalo 36.6 million as compared to 35.6
million last year, sheep 29.8 million against 29.4 million of corresponding period,
goat 70.3 million as compared to 68.4 million etc.

Pakistan is the fourth largest milk producer of the world and as per official
statistics, the country produced 54,328,000 tons of milk during the year 2015-16
against 52,632,000 tons in 2014-15. The human consumption is recorded at
43,818,000 tons. Gross value addition of livestock at constant cost factor of
2005-06 has increased from PKR 1,247 billion (2014-15) to PKR 1,292 billion
(2015-16), showing an increase of 3.63 percent over the same period last year.

However, Pakistan is far behind in providing processed milk to its population as

the industry is only processing around 4 percent of the total
production. According to a recent study carried out by the Lahore University of
Management Sciences (LUMS) in collaboration with Tetra Pak, the demand for
livestock and livestock products is increasing at a rapid pace on account of rising
population, increased incomes, changes in consumer preferences towards
livestock and dairy products and increasing export demand. According to the
study, the Pakistan Livestock Census 2006 suggests that livestock supply is
overshooting demand: growth in cattle, buffalo and goat population is recorded
at 4.5 percent, 3.5 percent and 3.1 percent per annum, respectively. This is much
higher than the growth rate of human population at nearly 2 percent. But, the
rising trend in real prices of beef, mutton and fresh milk negates this view. The
report further says it is generally believed that the official numbers of total milk
production in the country and the numbers on average milk yield of dairy
animals is far from realistic.

Read more: Pakistans Cotton Emergency

The study recommends for a better reliable data through revisiting the data
collection tools used by Pakistan Bureau of Statistics and the Government of
Pakistan ensuring better monitoring and supervision so that more reliable
numbers of the dairy sector are made available. It further notes the government
has a clear understanding of meeting the increased demand for dairy products
and the critical importance of the role large scale and corporate dairy farms play
in this regard. However, huge startup infrastructural cost serve as a major barrier
to entry for new players. The government must fine-tune the Livestock
Development Policy 2007 to bring it in line with the changing dynamics of this
sector, the study recommends.

Seasonal variation in fodder availability is a critical challenge for the

policymakers in the country because it is responsible for poor quality of feed and
rising fodder costs. Serious attempts are warranted to lower the cost of feed.
Policy measures that encourage silage making by smallholder dairy producers
would be a step in the right direction, the study observed. It may be worth
mentioning here that the Punjab Livestock and Dairy Development
Board (PLDDB) has recently launched small and big silage bales both for the
small livestock farmers and big farmers, which is a commendable step.

SOURCE: PAKISTAN ECONOMIC SURVEY 2015-16

Poultry
Poultry is the most vibrant and flourishing subsector of agriculture in Pakistan
which according to the ESP 2015-16 provides employment to over 1.5 million
people directly or indirectly. Pakistan has become the 11thlargest poultry producer
in the world with the production of 1.02 billion broilers annually. Besides, this
has also been playing the role of a check on the prices of mutton and beef also.
The survey declares it the backbone of agriculture sector which consumes over 7
million metric tons of agro residues.

Pakistan Poultry Association (PPA) former Chairman Abdul Basit notes that the
international halal food trade hovers around $300 billion, Pakistan being an
Islamic country can take advantage of this market by patronizing its food sector,
he says. According to him poultry which is a thriving and vibrant sector can play
a major role if provided incentives.
He said, Made in Pakistan tag could be the guarantee of halal food (Kosher) in
the international market and if Pakistan could only secure 10 percent of the total
international halal food trade, its food exports could leave behind its all other
exports. For this he proposes that the government should declare poultry export
as zero rated.

Abdul Basit further says poultry sector first pays duties at the grand parents
import, then electricity bill of the farms which keep these grandparents chickens,
then the downward stream of this industry pays taxes and sales tax on electricity
and feed ingredients. The poultry sector cannot claim drawback, so the sector
proposes to be offered 20 percent export rebate to make it competitive in the
international market. Citing the Indian example, he says, India is subsidizing its
whole agricultural sector and grains are 90 percent of the poultry feed, which
enabled Indian poultry to be cheaper.

Similarly, he says India is providing up to 90 percent of freight rebate to its

export sector adding if Pakistan offers 25 percent freight rebate to halal
food export it will help the sector become more competitive in the international
market and make further inroads.

Another challenge, Abdul Basit sees is the negation of the Pakistan government of
its own policy of not imposing duties and sales tax on raw materials of any sector
which is not produced in the country. He sarcastically notes that poultry is being
treated step motherly in this case where they have to pay 15 percent duties on the
import of grandparent chickens. Similarly, he says soybean meal which is the
major constituent of the poultry feed is also charged 11 percent duty on import
and 10 percent sales tax. He says abolishing these duties will not favor any sector
or any industry but the poor people of Pakistan who are getting access to protein
in favor of cheaper poultry products.
SOURCE: PAKISTAN ECONOMIC SURVEY 2015-16

Fisheries
Pakistan has both marine water and inland fisheries based in rivers, lakes, ponds
and dams etc. According to ESP during the period of 2015-16 the total production
from both sources was estimated at 499,000 metric tons including 365,000
metrics from sea and remaining from the inland fisheries sector. Pakistan
exports, nevertheless, have been decreased by 7.30 percent in quantity during the
same period.

Forestry
Though forests sector of Pakistan showed a positive growth during the financial
year 2015-16 which according to the ESP 2015-16, contributes 2.06 percent in the
agriculture value addition posting a growth rate of 8.84 percent as compared to
the negative growth of 10.43 percent last year. Nevertheless, a look on forest area
of Pakistan and its comparison with other countries following progressive
forestry practices reveal that Pakistan is a forest poor country; only 4.55 million
hectares. The per capita forest area is merely 0.033 hectare compared with the
world average of one hectare. The primary reason for meager forest area is that
most of the land area (70-80 percent) of Pakistan falls in arid or semi-arid zones
where precipitation is too low to support tree growth.

Global Forest Watch quoting FAO data of year 2011 claims that 53,000 people are
directly attached with this sector in Pakistan for their living. This sector needs
special attention. Federal and provincial governments do launch tree plantation
campaigns twice every year but there is a need to ensure complete care of the
saplings planted every year ensuring these turn in to fully grown trees.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) governments billion tree plantation campaign

launched last year is also a commendable step but its results are awaited.

Oilseeds
The major oilseed crops of Pakistan are sunflower, canola, rapeseed/mustard and
cotton. During the year 2014-15 total availability of edible oil was 3.523 million
tons. Local production of edible oil contributed 0.556 million tons while import
of edible oil/oilseeds was 2.967 million tons and import bill for the same period
was PKR 269.412 billion. While the area under cultivation of oilseeds in Pakistan
slightly decreased in 2015-16 to 8,474,000 acres from 8,498,000 acres which
according to the statistics of the Pakistan Oilseed Development Board(PODB)
was because of lower international prices of oilseed which also impacted the local
prices discouraging the farmers.

After 18th Amendment, PODB is functioning only in Federal territory without

proper staff and organization. Even liaison with provinces has no mechanism.
Area under sunflower has been reduced from 1.2 million hectare to 0.9 million
hectares. PODB should have at least strong coordination setup at provincial level
for promotion of oil seed crop in the country.

The Punjab government is also working on promotion of olive oil in the province.
Both private and public sectors are working and if these efforts are combined
with the federal department and other provinces, it could be a big leap towards
reducing reliance on imported oil for food usage.

Fertilizers
Fertilizers, the most important but at the same time one of the most expensive
input plays a role of 30 to 50 percent towards increase in yields. According to
the ESP 2015-16, most of Pakistans soils are deficient in three basic essential
plant nutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus and potash) required by the plants in large
quantities for normal growth and development. The survey claims that total off
take of fertilizer nutrients recorded a decrease by 10.1 percent during 2015-16
(July-March) period.

In the recent budget (2016-17), the federal government has announced a cut in
the prices of Urea and DAP fertilizers. The incentive has fetched mixed reaction
from the farmers as some organizations welcomed the cut while some of them
were of the view that the cut should have been deeper.

Agri Forum Pakistan Chairman Muhammad Ibrahim Mughal is of the view that
the government should further lower down the prices of Urea and DAP and also
pay attention towards promoting the use of potash based fertilizers. He also says
the use of Urea and DAP fertilizers should be doubled to ensure more per acre
yield of different crops.

Pakistan is also exporting horticulture products such as citrus, mangoes and

guava etc. However, growers and exporters are very concerned that export is
declining for the last three years. Progressive Mango Growers Association of
Multan President and Vice President of the Multan Chamber of Commerce and
Industry Tariq Khan said that the export of mangoes in 2013 was over 120,000
tons which dropped down to only 62,000 tons last year.

According to him, unnecessary tight policies adopted by the Department of Plant

Protection during the last two years resulted in decrease in the fruit export.
Similarly, he said Pakistan Horticulture Development and Export
Company (PHDEC) which played a very important role in starting exports of
kinnow and mangoes from the country has failed to achieve its objectives because
of faulty policies of the previous government.

Tariq is, however, hopeful saying that this year policies of the present
government seem good. The Ministry of Commerce is trying to revamp PHDEC,
and produce of mango is also good with expectation of 1.7 million tons of fruit.
He hopes export of mangoes will again touch the 100,000 mark this year.

Climate change
According to a policy brief by the Leadership for Environment and Development
(LEAD) Pakistan, South Asia is expected to incur substantial losses in
agricultural output, to the tune of 10-17 percent as a result of increases in average
temperatures (of 2.3-4.5c) and variation in precipitation. Climate change
impacts agriculture though inducing uncertainties in the supply and availability
of our water resources.

In Pakistan, per capita water availability has decreased by an over whopping 400
percent since 1947, leading to the conclusion that Pakistan is a water-stressed
country. The UNs Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) measures the
pressure on national water resources by calculating water withdrawal as a
percentage of total renewable water resources (TRWR). Pakistans TRWR value is
74 percent: stresses are considered high if the value is above 25 percent so
Pakistans figure is indeed exorbitant. Food security is also closely linked to water
availability. There are different pathways through which climate change can
affect agriculture. The results indicate a rise in long term average temperatures,
with significant negative consequences for agriculture, while precipitation
variations show alternate signs depending on the season and region under
consideration. In particular, climatic unpredictability in terms of precipitation
will have significant impacts in KP, Balochistan and Sindh, given their
dependence on rain-fed cropping. Furthermore, the overall surface water
availability is also getting impacted. During 2012-13, the availability of water as
an essential input for Kharif (early summer planting with autumn harvest a
period of April to September) was 14 percent less than normal and
during Rabi (winter sowing and spring harvest) season it was 12.4 percent less
than the normal availability.

The policy brief suggests increased budgetary allocations for climate change
actions and plans. The climate change impact in terms of losses in agricultural
productivity is projected in the range of $6.94 to $30.34 billion by 2040. There is
an urgent need to allocate resources to mitigate climate change commensurate to
Pakistans vulnerability. There is a need to systematically incorporate adaptation
and mitigation actions in the investment and budgetary decisions at the national
level, with linkages to provincial and district level action plans. There is a strong
case that can be made for immediate-term public expenditure on reducing
vulnerability and scaling up of adaptation measures. This can only be achieved if
we allocate adequate resources and mainstream climate change into the national
budget. Develop national water policy and provincial water action plans.

Water security is important for adaptation and a key driver of agricultural

productivity and sustainability. Pakistans present state of water scarcity is one of
the biggest threats to its attaining food security. We need a comprehensive
national water policy, supported by provincial-level water action plan. Provincial
water policies can address water-related climate change adaptation measures at
the local level as recommended by the National Climate Change Policy 2012.
Increase capacity both human and financial of provincial and district
government departments. The actual brunt of climate change is faced at the farm
level. Provincial- and district-level government departments are on the frontline
but despite their critical position, they have very limited ability to adapt and act
in a timely manner. There is a strong need to build capacity, in both human and
financial termsto build resilience at the local levels. This can include, but not
limited to better institutions, improved extension services, budget allocations,
and access to weather information, using resistant crop varieties and
implementing efficient agriculture practices. Cascade the National Climate
Change Policy into provincial climate change action plans. It is not possible to
fully implement a policy without local-level action plans and the capacity to
execute them. The National Climate Change Policy is a comprehensive document
addressing a range of sectors and climatic impacts. However, it needs to be
translated into provincial- and then district-level adaptation action plans.
Climate variations and associated risks are experienced locally, and only local
action plans will build resilience to climatic unpredictability and extreme events.
There is a need to develop compensation and support strategies for farmers. At
community level, climate change impacts are detrimental for both lives and
livelihoods but according to a LUMS/WWF study, adaptation strategies have
significant cost barriers. Financial support and access to credit/financial markets
is needed both in a non-disaster context to help the adaptation in a long term
sustainable development perspective and in a disaster context to help the disaster
risk management, by supporting prevention, preparedness and resilience (pre-
disaster perspective) and to help the emergency response, reconstruction and
recovery (post disaster perspective). A compensation strategy, including disaster
insurance mechanisms, is needed, the brief concludes.

An expert from the Punjab Agriculture Department, seeking anonymity, said the
recent failure of cotton crop was not the result of total failure of the seed as the
same seed had been giving higher yields during the last four years. Instead, he
said the inability of the seed being used to cope with the changing climate
patterns was the result of ruining of the crop. We need to introduce new seeds to
meet the impacts of changing climate in Pakistan so we not only maintain our
cotton output but enhance it for the requirement of our main industrial sector,
he added.

Seeds
Of many challenges Pakistans agriculture sector is faced with is the low quality of
seeda key input in crop production.

Pakistan needs to focus on more research and development to introduce new

varieties of seed employing technology. The country also needs to strengthen
regulations in the seed sector. Seed Act 2015 was passed last year but its rules
and regulations are still in the process. Likewise Plant Breeders Act promulgation
is also the need of the time so as investors and technology providers can come to
the country without any fear of loss of their hard labor. Pakistans production in
wheat, rice and other major crops is stable while cotton is facing a severe
challenge. So there is dire need to introduce certified genetically modified
organisms (GMOs) and other new technologies to enhance the production which
will ensure better returns to growers and add to their profitability.
Read more: Technology: The Missing Link in Pakistans Agriculture
Sector

Information and communication technology (ICT) in

agriculture
Today technology in agriculture is being developed and applied in innovative
ways with a primary focus to assist the farmer in enhancing its production.
Information and communication technologies (ICT) in agriculture offers a wide
range of solutions to agricultural challenges. It is seen as an emerging field
focusing on the enhancement of agricultural and rural development through
improved information and communication processes. In this context, ICT is used
as an umbrella term encompassing all information and communication
technologies including devices, networks, mobiles, services and applications;
these range from innovative Internet-era technologies and sensors to other pre-
existing aids such as fixed telephones, televisions, radios and satellites.

Many ICT interventions have been developed and tested around the world, with
varied degrees of success, to help agriculturists improve their livelihoods through
increased agricultural productivity and incomes, and reduction in risks. Though
in Pakistan, provincial agriculture departments are using fixed telephones as
helpline to guide and disseminate information about latest agricultural
technologies to the growers, there is a need to develop liaison with some
international firms who are providing ICT services to farmers in different
countries, which could bring these services to Pakistan for growers to take benefit
of it in getting the advance information of weather, latest growing technologies,
even to check their crop status on their mobile phones or tabs etc.

Nevertheless, Punjab Agriculture Department sources say that the department is

using all modes of ICT to disseminate pre and post-harvest methodologies, taking
care of crops and weather alerts to the growers. It includes newspapers,
television, Facebook, Twitter, SMS, Whatsapp and free telephone landline.
According to them, the department is also carrying out a survey of Punjab to
know the fertility of land and then provide correct guidance and information to
tillers of this land so that they can take correct decision at the critical junctures of
any crop.

Mechanization
Mechanization in agricultural sector is rapidly growing in Pakistan and especially
in Punjab and Sindh provinces. The sowing and threshing processes are said to
be 100 percent mechanized in the country while hoeing process is partially
mechanized. However, this ratio also varies with the crops.

A grower from Jhang district, a Mr. Intikhab says mechanization is on the rise as
it not only saves time of the grower but labor too and prepares land in a very
befitting manner for the next crop or harvest any crop without higher wastage
ratio.

According to him even small growers are purchasing machines and they share
with their counter parts in rural areas.

Chief Agriculture at the Planning and Development (P&D) Department Punjab,

Dr. Muhammad Ashraf throwing light on the challenges being faced by the
agriculture industry said not having reasonable return of their hard labor is the
biggest challenge for farmers. The production cost is higher while price of the
produce is lower than that. If we compare our agricultural sector with India,
production cost is much lower there because of heavy subsidies being extended
by the Indian government to growers in the shape of subsidy on electricity, power
and machinery etc. Then they also have a strong commodity support price
mechanism, which is very helpful to growers prosperity, he remarked.

However, he says federal government in general and the Punjab governments in

particular has realized this side of the agricultural sector adding incentives
announced in recent budget both at federal and provincial level are reflective of
it. He said Pakistan could only compete in the international market by bringing
down the input cost.

Second, important challenge is lower per acre yield, says Dr. Ashraf while adding
major reason in this regard is non-availability of certified seeds. We have to
work a lot on this subject. Punjab is working on this sector and bringing cotton
seed reform project, so as to enable the public sector to produce certified high
quality and high yielding cotton seeds so our growers do not have to rely on
foreign assistance or company.

Dr. Ashraf says people at the extremities of canals cannot have water according to
their needs as either breeches or cuts deprive them of their share. According to
him, Punjab Irrigation Development Authority(PIDA), which was formed to
resolve these issues, is not seen to be very active. We are trying to make this
more active and also promoting smart use of water resources by promoting Drip
Irrigation System so crops should be fed with that much water they actually need.
The government is working on lining of water courses/channels. He further says
there are many projects including one funded by the World Bank worth PKR
21.25 billion called Punjab Irrigated Agriculture Productivity Improvement
Project (PIPIP) while another is optimizing water course conveyance efficiency
through enhancing lining worth PKR 6.8 billion.

Dr. Ashraf adds that the government is also promoting use of machinery in
farming so as to bring down the cost of labor which includes providing subsidized
laser land levelers, improving extension services and subsidy on tractors and
other agricultural implements under special Kissan Package announced by the
Chief Minister Shehbaz Sharif.

He said concept paper of another project was ready under which cooperative
farming would be encouraged so the resources of a community should be pooled
so all could take benefit of it. Subsidy on fertilizers and seeds has also been
announced. Climate change is another threat to the agriculture and the
government is trying to tilt the Annual Development Program (ADP) in such a
way which could address the issues. He said efforts were being made to introduce
such seeds which could be tolerant to climate change adding tunnel farming and
greenhouse farming was being promoted and a long-term counter plan was also
being devised to mitigate the damages by floods or drought. We are cognizant of
the fact that if we fail to address this issue it will ruin our future, he added.

Absence of proper and abundant storage system is another challenge because in

case of bumper crop (any crop) it is difficult to retain the surplus for strategic use
or to export at a suitable time. In this case, preliminary sessions have been
conducted providing one million metric ton of grain silos in public sector and two
million metric ton of grain silos in private sector. On the other hand, government
is also considering silos project to be executed under Public-Private Partnership
mode.

On research and development, he suggested revitalization of Punjab Agricultural

Research Board (PARB) and Punjab Seed Corporation.

Conclusion
The experts are of the view that while increased agricultural production and high
crops yield is essential for food security, the government has to make agriculture
industry more effective in ensuring profits to the growers, who are ready to work
hard with dedication to produce more and more as evident from the growth of
wheat and sugarcane. There is a consensus among the growers that the
government should introduce policies which can turn the agriculture industry
into a profitable enterprise.

Seed sector, which is the base of crop, should be regulated effectively by ensuring
implementation on Seed Act, introducing specifications for seeds before they are
gone for commercial launch and introduction of Plant Breeders Act to attract
reputable new technology providers to Pakistan who are delivering quality
worldwide.
The government should ensure agriculture credit to the growers to buy better
inputs and high quality seeds while farm loans should be kept separated from the
agro-based industries.

The experts also suggest that development allocations should be made to the
rural areas according to the population ratios while separate institutions should
be established for international marketing of our agricultural commodities.

Agricultural inputs including fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides and others should

be made economical by withdrawing sales tax on it besides ensuring availability
of certified seed of all crops. Similarly, the experts suggest that effective action be
launched to curb trade of fake or substandard pesticides and herbicides.