All Pakistan Fruit & Vegetable Exporters, Importers and Merchants Association (PFVA) has presented recommendations to the Federal Minister for National Food Security & Research (NFSR) for increase in exports and production of fruits and vegetables. PFVA's patron-in-chief and ex-chairman Waheed Ahmed presented the recommendations at the "Kinnow Convention 2019" organised by PFVA to highlight issues and potential of the horticulture sector where Federal Minister Sahibzada Mohammad Sultan was chief guest.
The PFVA chief patron stated that the agriculture sector had been terribly hurt with introduction of the 18th Amendment. He said provinces do not have adequate resources and potential for agriculture research that, he apprehended, may lead to serious threat to food security of Pakistan. He proposed the latest irrigation system be introduced to save the water equivalent to the capacity of two dams from wastage in a period of three years.
During the event, paying rich tributes to vital role and extensive efforts by PFVA for uplift of the Horticulture sector, the Minister also pledged that the federal government would play a significant role in development and enhancement of export of this sector. Addressing the convention, Waheed Ahmed said, with support of FPCCI, the PFVA devised a comprehensive "National Horticulture Vision" and Pakistan can enhance horticulture exports from current level of $620 million to $2.5 billion within 5 years and $6 billion within a decade by implementing the PFVA recommended policy.
"With this vision, employment opportunities for 1.5 million people can also be created within five years while 4 million people are anticipated to get jobs within 10 years," he said, adding that the cost of high production is a tough challenge for further growth of the sector which can be sorted out conveniently by exploring new varieties and improving yield per acre through extensive research.
He said PFVA would organize seminars across the country with support of provincial and federal governments for effective implementation of horticulture vision. Waheed said that 90 percent available water is used in the agriculture sector while 60 percent water is wasted due to open canals. He said production is severely affected when farms and orchards are supplied excessive water more than that of their requirements while the drip system being used in Agriculture and Horticulture sector in the world nowadays, is very economical in effectively saving wastage of water.
He said Pakistan is to spend $10 billion on construction of dams which are anticipated to be commissioned in 7 to 8 years. However, if $1 billion are spent to develop drip irrigation system, it can save the amount of water (likely to be wasted) equivalent to capacity of two dams which can address serious issue of increasing Food Security in the country, he suggested.
He noted that Pakistan was ranked seventh in the world list of the countries affected due to global warming, as per the reports by the World Bank and the United Nations Food Agriculture Organization (FAO) which clearly emphasised the need to take immediate necessary steps on war footings to address this potential serious threat, which may take 2 to 3 years before positive impact of these step become evident.
Waheed said that 375,000 ton kinnow worth $200 million was exported last year and with introduction of new varieties of Citrus fruit coupled with increase in cultivated area of kinnow, export of the fruit can be enhanced to $1 billion. He expressed hope that overall horticultural export can be increased to US$1 billion within a year, if short term recommendations of PFVA's horticulture vision are implemented by taking proposed steps.
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