Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP) has requested the Ministry of Commerce & Trade to arrange its meeting with the Ministry of the National Food Security and Research (MNFS&R) to seek solutions to the hardships being faced by the rice exporters because of the Department of Plant Protection (DPP).

The Department of Plant Protection (DPP) is an allied department of the MNFS&R and is responsible for managing the export and import of all agricultural commodities. This is the most important organization for monitoring and controlling the import and export by applying international Sanitary and Phyto-Sanitary (SPS) regulations, which have already been ratified by Pakistan under the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC).

Rice is a major export commodity of Pakistan, besides cotton, citrus, mango, dates, vegetables, potato and other raw and processed foodstuff, said REAP Chairman Shahjahan Malik while talking to Business Recorder here on Friday.

Rice export could be enhanced immediately but the DPP is facing a host of institutional capacity issues, which can be managed through aggressive capacity development.

Shahjahan Malik further said that they are facing multiple issues concerning inspection by the Department of Plant Protection (DPP) such as not having a proper place for inspection or not enough strength of the staff concerned.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019