Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Shaukat Tarin, has urged the Zarai Taraqiati Bank Limited (ZTBL) to provide credit for building agri malls, commodity warehouses, and cold storage facilities under public-private partnership to eliminate the role of middlemen and brokers.
In a meeting with the ZTBL Board of Directors led by President ZTBL Muhammad Shahbaz Jameel at the Finance Division, Tarin emphasized the need to transform the whole agriculture sector to ensure that the farmers could get higher income for their produce. “The ZTBL can play a pivotal role in this regard,” he underscored.
President ZTBL, Jameel, shed light on the ‘Model Farm’ concept to educate and facilitate farmers in order to improve value-added products, such as cheese, pasteurized milk, fish farming, and hydroponics, etc. and thus enhance their income. He added that the concept also contained water conservation initiatives such as solar tube wells, and drip irrigation for improved harvesting and farming practices.
The Finance Minister commended the idea of financial inclusion of the rural population and emphasized steps to maximize the participation of women in the farm-to-retail-value chain. He underscored the advisory role of ZTBL in facilitating farmers for improved profitability.
In the end, the Finance Minister acknowledged the financial turnaround of ZTBL and urged it to streamline the existing human resource, introduce innovative banking solutions, improve recoveries, and use modern techniques to maximize its potential. He assured the ZTBL Board of Directors of full support and facilitation from the government.
