The government has allocated 13 different projects to Ministry of National Food Security and Research (MONFSR) that were stopped after devolution of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture to the provinces.
Official sources told Business Recorder that the projects earlier stopped or handed over to the Planning Commission or other ministries, were restored and allocated on the decision of a committee headed by Syed Khursheed Shah, Minister for Religious Affairs to Ministry of Food Security and Research.
The committee tasked by the government to address post devolution matters and concerns of different provinces, restored the projects upon the request of the Ministry of Food. These projects targeted Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration, Azad Jammu Kashmir, Gilgit Baltistan and Federal Administrated Tribal Areas (Fata) as well as Balochistan.
The projects restored include Agriculture Sector Development Load (ASDL-II), national projects to stimulate the adoption of permanent raised bed in Maize-Wheat and cotton wheat farming system in Pakistan, biological control of major cotton pest including mealy bug in Pakistan, establishment of facilitation unit for participatory vegetable seed and nursery production programme, commercialisation of tea production through public private partnership, national programme for improvement of watercourses in Pakistan and programme implementation unit of ASPL-II.
Similarly, the government also restored another five projects including special programme for food security and productivity enhancement of small farmers in 1012 villages. Corps maximisation project, restructuring of national agric research system in Balochistan, development of Olive production and processing in Balochistan, growing of oil palm in coastal belt of Balochistan and oil palm development project Sindh and Balochistan.
The other projects restored include the special programme for strengthening quality inspection services in compliance with WTO establishment of Integrated National Animal and Plant Health Inspection Services (NAPHIS), which placed under Ministry of Commerce after devolution of Ministry of Food and Agriculture.