PHDEC, TDAP need 'a shot in the arm'

Pakistan Horticulture Development & Export Company (PHDEC) and Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP), both need 'a shot in the arm,' as once again they failed to tap the 1.7 billion Muslims globally for the export of dates in Ramazan.
Pakistani dates, particularly those grown in Balochistan are one of the finest found anywhere in the world. Since means of communications are scare in Balochistan, dates worth millions of rupees go waste. It is unfortunate that Pakistan import dates to meet the local demand. People prefer to eat the dark and plump dates.
Balochistan dates are juicy, black in color and good in taste and large in size. With little efforts Pakistan could export dates worth $250 to $300 annually. Saudi Arabia has gifted 200 tons dates to Pakistan ahead of the month of Ramazan. In dates producing Pakistan's ranking has come down from fourth to sixth position, harvesting 600,000 tonnes of dates in 2012. Blochistan's share was the highest.
Export of our fresh dates fetches much higher values, ranging between 7-13 percent. India is the sole buyer of Pakistani dates. While major date producing nations have almost fully industrialised their date's sector, Pakistan is still way behind. Director Harvest Trading, Ahmad Jawad said that Pakistan has the potential of producing quality dates to India and other countries with different shapes and forms and could compete with other exporting countries; subject to value addition. Dry dates constitute major volume of Pakistani export. Exports statistics show that soft dates fetch higher prices in international marker which shows that opportunity is wide open for Pakistan to increase its share in global trade of soft dates.
Due to lack of value addition and being sub-standard Pakistan receives low price for its dates as compared to other date exporting countries like Israel, UAE, Egypt, K.S.A and Tunisia. Jawad said the important of value addition in the date's sector could hardly be overemphasised. A host of value added products are prepared from the fruit of date palm, which include date paste, date pressed blocks, date syrup, date liquid sugar, date jam, date vinegar and non-alcoholic sparkling drinks.
Even date seeds that one throws away as waste are quite useful. In Morocco, coffee is prepared from date seeds. Although the Islamic Development Bank of Pakistan, Jeddah had indicated its willingness to finance up to 65 percent of the total costs of the projects, which included manufacturing of value-added date products in Pakistan but no progress has been seen since the offer was made few years ago. It is high time that government encouraged country's entrepreneurs to invest in this highly profitable sector and set up plants to manufacture value-added products for export under public-private partnership, he said.