The ministries of commerce and national food security & research (MNFS&R) have made it clear that there is no ban on exports of rice from Pakistan as the country has sufficient stocks of the commodity.

The Rice Exporters Association of Pakistan (REAP) after hearing the rumours of a ban on rice exports from Pakistan met Prime Minister's Advisor on Commerce Razzak Dawood and MNFS&R Minister Syed Fakhar Imam for clarification and they told the exporters to continue their operations.

REAP Chairman Shahjahan Malik while talking to Business Recorder here on Friday said he immediately took a delegation comprising Sami Ullah Naeem, Shahid Tarar and Pir Syed Nazim Hussain Shah to both the ministries and held detailed discussion on rice issues and they were told that the tweet of Prime Minister in this regard was just an observation and not a decision.

Malik asked his counterparts to continue their operations of export and earn precious foreign exchange in this time of need for their country. He hoped that an official clarification would soon be given by the quarters concerned.

Meanwhile, according to a tweet of Abdul Razak Dawood, the export of rice was discussed with the prime minister and his office and it is clarified that the export of rice is allowed. "Once again, in time of crisis, Pakistan has proven to be a reliable supplier of export goods," the advisor added.

He also appealed to all the REAP members to aggressively pursue rice exports and keep on increasing market share of Pakistan in the world market.