Bilateral trade between India and Pakistan can be enhanced while protecting the interests of stakeholders especially farmers, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad (UAF) Vice Chancellor Iqrar Ahmad Khan said on Monday.
He was speaking at a conference on Improving Economic Governance in Agriculture Sector through Trade Liberalisation between Pakistan and India organised by the UAF.
Khan said it was important to understand the seasonal nature of the trade. “For example, the peak season of potatoes is August and September in India. In Pakistan, it is October and November,” he said.
He said the trust deficit between the two countries should be bridged through dialogue.
Praising India for its agricultural policies, the UAF VC said farmers in the Indian Punjab were being given a subsidy on tube-wells.
Lahore University of Management Sciences (Lums) Pro-Chancellor Syed Baber Ali said technology should be used to improve farm production.
He said 70 per cent of Pakistan’s population was directly or indirectly involved in agriculture. Ali said an entrepreneurship cell should be set up at the UAF to help the youth translate knowledge into better goods and services.
MNA Rana Afzal said the government was doing its best to strengthen the agriculture sector. He said the recommendations made at the seminar would be sent to the government. “Agriculture is the backbone of our economy accounting for 21 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP),” he added.
Pakistan Farmers’ Association President Tariq Bucha asked the government to address farmers’ issues. “At least 10 per cent of the budget must be reserved for agriculture,” he said.
He said the farmers must be taken on board when trade policies were formulised.
Office of Research, Innovation and Commercialisation (ORIC) Director Asif Ali, Abdul Ghafoor, Waseem Ahmad, Mubashar Mehdi, Ayub Agriculture Research Institute Director Abid Mehmood and Aiwan-i-Zaraat president Siddique Naseem were also present on the occasion.
Published in The Express Tribune, March 12th, 2014.