Islamabad:
Experts at a political dialogue called for the establishment of a Pakistan-China Council on Agricultural Development, led by the private sector of both countries, with a focus on technology transfer and capacity building of Pakistani farmers in modern technologies under the China Economic- Pakistan Corridor (CPEC).
The policy dialogue was organized by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) on ‘Greening CPEC: Sustainable Agriculture in Pakistan and Learning from China’ on Friday.
Former CPEC project manager and former Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Board of Investment CEO Dr Hassan Daud Butt said the future of agricultural production and food security is based on technological progress, good policies and leadership.
However, it is advisable to establish a rural development council, led by the private sector and in parallel with the establishment of links with its Chinese counterparts, which will help to achieve the goals quickly.
He pointed out that China has made tremendous progress in agriculture through consistent policies, leadership and technology-driven interventions.
Butt pointed out that China’s progress in the agricultural sector was unique in that less public capital and more private investment was used in its development.
“Pakistan needs to learn from the Chinese about planning short, medium and long-term goals with a top-down approach and policy consistency. In addition, leadership in the public and private sectors must be strengthened through mutual cooperation,” he said.
While SDPI’s study was based on sustainable agricultural development through lessons learned from China, it urged the report’s authors to add livestock as an element to further broaden the field with knowledge and marketing aspects. Research Associate Misbah Khan highlighted the findings of the report titled “Scoping Study for Agricultural Development in Pakistan”.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 11u2024.
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