Commission markets in Middle East termed 'pain in the neck': fruit exporters criticise PHDEC's role

Commission markets in the Middle East are "pain in the neck" for the exporters of horticulture products. Currently, 70 percent of the fruit, particularly Kinnow and mango, are exported to Middle East every year but the exporters, instead of making profits, bear huge losses due to the existence of these markets.
Exporters say that the Pakistan Horticulture Development and Export Company (PHDEC), which is mandated to promote, regulate, co-ordinate and enhance the export of horticulture products, should find new countries with the help of the private sector to salvage them from the 'commission markets' which is retarding the growth and progress of exports of fruits and vegetables to Middle East. The main issue is to first have a proper long term strategy and solutions which, unfortunately, is missing and hindering te growth of exports as a result of faulty decisions.
Stakeholders in the horticulture value chain say that although PHDEC's main thrust should be to introduce Pakistan to high end international markets through strategic efforts along with integrated interventions and facilitation in all the sub-sectors of the value chain, practically speaking, it lacks proper vision and planning. Whatever the cause--whether lack of funding or lack of interest by the management--PHDEC today stands on the opposite of its mandate.
PHDEC's failures could be counted on fingertips. It is now almost seven years that the date processing plant, which was to be set up in Kahirpur at a cost of Rs 20 million, has not been executed so far. Because of this delay, the Ministry of Commerce has conveniently put the multimillion rupees project under the rugs. The ministry, instead of fixing responsibility for PHDEC's failure in installing the dates processing plant and constructing cold storage at Khairpur, has submitted the case to the Export Development Fund (EDF) for further perusal.
The Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP) had submitted the matter to the commerce ministry and requested it to initiate an investigation against PHDEC, as was demanded by the Vice-President of Sindh Chamber of Agriculture, Khairpur. An official letter of TDAP shows that it had also requested that the Company might be directed to refund Rs 20 million to TDAP to enable it to carry out the project.
PHDEC has not only failed to seek approval of the Board of Directors for transferring Rs 20 million from United Bank Ltd to Faysal Bank, it could not justify slow progress on the project as well. It also failed to furnish any documentary evidence of its request to the provincial government for the allocation of funds, or to bring the matter to the notice of the Ministry of Commerce or TDAP. This inordinate delay has resulted in huge financial loss to the government.
Although the PHDEC chief, who had worked in PTCL before his present assignment, had claimed that the Company was working on export of dates, potatoes, onion and citrus, besides mangoes, from Pakistan and that dates' export program was being launched in co-operation with Sindh Investment Board and the government of Balochistan, but no development has been seen so far in that direction.
On the other hand, on the issue of mango exports to the United States, which was initiated by the PHDEC, Abid Butt, of Food Street, New York, had badly criticised the Company. Although he had completed all the required documentations in the US, he faced difficulties from PHDEC, which did not provide technical details available in its office.
To date, the PHDEC has not been able to convince the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) officials to approve more destinations to facilitate US buyers. "If we don't revisit, we might lose the US market, in terms of mangoes, due to cost factor," stakeholders said, adding that the Agriculture Division in US Embassy in Islamabad had told very clearly that PHDEC was the main stakeholder in this transaction. "Still, we do not know what PHDEC plans are for the next year for export of mangoes. Whether they will be successful or not"? they questioned.