Dr Syed Wajid H Peerzada, Director and National Co-ordinator World Trade Organisation, Ministry of Food and Agriculture, said that globalisation is creating an unequal world and gap between rich and poor is widening as 2.8 million people are living on less than two dollars a day and 1.2 billion people earn less than dollar a day. He was speaking at the presentation ceremony of study on "WTO regime and its impact on Pakistan's agriculture" conducted by Centre for Democratic Development (CDD), Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, here on Wednesday.
Dr Peerzada said that globalisation trends are based on trade liberalisation, dismantling tariffs, restructuring multinational companies, changing production systems, cyberspace, Information Technology, electronic business, lay-off employment, expanding service sector, dominating economics, financial and capital markets.
He said that 70 percent of country's population earns livelihood from agriculture sector and there is 1.2 percent increase in annual agriculture growth rate till farmers are suffering as they are not given due reward of their labour and agricultural products are not up to the international standards.
Dr Peerzada said that up-gradation of all kind of products up to the international levels can make the industrialists and traders capable to meet the challenges of WTO and establish an export quality name in the international market.
WTO implementations will bound the country to clean the agriculture sector from labour exploitation, bonded labour and child labour as the agricultural products from labour exploiting countries will be banned, he added.
Dr Peerzada said that government should implement comprehensive policies, transparent governance, and agricultural and industrial loans should be provided to the growers and investors so that they would be able to compete in the international market.
He said that WTO regime has some drawbacks as the products would be scrutinised on the basis of international hygienic and health standards.
Senator Rozeena Alam said that NGOs must perform their due role to bring awareness among common growers on WTO implementations as the government has done less homework on preparatory measures.
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