Panel discussion on 'Food Security Issues in Pakistan'

The Vice Chancellor GC University Lahore Professor Dr Khalid Aftab has underscored the need to promote co-operation and collaboration across educational institutions in order to encourage research on key economic issues and challenges and fill the gap that currently exists in terms of qualified human resource.
While addressing the inaugural session of the PIDE's Golden Jubilee Seminar jointly organised by the Department of Economics, GC University and Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE), he said that the shortage of quality manpower is the biggest deficit.
He referred to the experiences of British Universities, which are coming together and pooling resources to produce quality graduates and research for the greater benefit of the society. He appreciated PIDE's contribution in the field of economic and social research and hoped that collaborative research will be encouraged in educational institutions in future.
Dr Rashid Amjad, PIDE's Vice Chancellor highlights the contributions made by PIDE in recent years after attaining the status of the University. He said that PIDE has served a good intellectual hub for economists of the country.
He mentioned the recent report designed by the panel of economists from all the four provinces on "Economic stabilisation with the human face" has recommended realistic GDP targets and a number of economic steps to restore the health of the economy.
These steps include fiscal resource mobilisation, improving the current account deficit and suggested the government to be tightening it belt in terms of current and development expenditure. Dr Ijaz Nabi Dean Faculty of Social Studies Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) underlined to need to research on fiscal and current account issues, which are big problems of the economy.
The inaugural session was followed by a Panel Discussion on "Food Security Issues in Pakistan. Panelists include Dr Abdul Salam Professor of Economics, FUUAST, Dr Munir Ahmad, Pakistan Agricultural Research Council Islamabad, Dr Shakil Ramay from the Sustainable Development Policy Institute.
The panel discussion was chaired by Dr ME Tusneem, Member Agriculture, Planning Commission Islamabad and co chaired by Dr Amin ul Haq Dean Faculty of Science and Technology and Director Sustainable Centre GC University Lahore. Panelists highlighted the concerns of global food security, current situation and emerging challenges and discussed the agricultural and food security situation in Pakistan with reference to governance, peace and transparency issues.