Pakistan’s agriculture share to the gross domestic product is nearly 24 percent and employs about 43 percent of the country’s workforce, but performance of this vital sector has been slowing down for the last one decade, pushing the country into the list of nations threatened by food insecurity. The overall economic scenario of the country is improving. However, the state of agriculture economy is disappointing as it could not maintain average standard rate of improvement due to negligence and apathy of the official cadre. The depleting water resources, obsolete methods of cultivation and lack of research are also areas of concern affecting this sector. The governments after governments not only failed to launch any research and development programme, but also could not devise proper pricing and procurement policies to change the lot of farmer community. Most of the small farmers have left the profession once for all and have started working as labourers in industrial units. Pakistan owns the best agriculture land of the world and canal system to prove itself as the food capital of the world. However, it has failed to fulfill even the nation’s food requirements as it posted minus growth in the agriculture sector in one and half decades of this century.
The economy of the country is changing and the issues faced by the agriculture sector also need out of the box solutions. The traditional ways of cultivation and handling of agriculture economy have lost their credibility. The officials associated with the sector will have to coordinate with agricultural community to devise new methods of learning and ensure cash supply wherein it is required. Pakistan is among the top 10 producers of wheat, cotton, sugarcane and citrus fruit but food insecurity is coming as challenge for the nation. The country has strong livestock sector, contributing 11 percent to the GDP and 35 million people are engaged with it.
However, the government will have to take a proactive approach to resolve its financial and administrative issues. The prime minister has already announced an agriculture package worth billions of rupees, but it is facing snags at the implementation stage. The state of agriculture can only improve if all the stakeholders join hands and work in unison. If industry needs government funding and tax relief, the agriculture sector also requires package of concessions and incentives to meet the growing demand of food in the country. The government also needs to develop infrastructure in rural areas, improve irrigation network and ensure funding through concessionary loans.
