President Alvi Calls for Use of Modern Technology to Boost Agri Sector

President Dr. Arif Alvi Thursday said the use of modern technology and the latest methods of cultivation were imperative to increase the per acre yield of major crops and boost the agriculture sector.

Speaking at the Farmers Day ceremony, he emphasized that the use of modern technology and new seeds like BT cotton would uplift the agriculture sector of the country. He said it was heartening to note that the farmers earned a record Rs. 1,100 billion from the production of their crops. He said the agriculture sector immensely supported the country’s economy during the COVID 19 pandemic and the food needs of the people were met due to the efforts of the farmers.

Talking about issues faced by the agriculture sector, he said the low per acre yield of wheat, cotton, and other major crops was a problem. He underlined the need for tackling the issue of scarcity of water by adopting drip and spray irrigation and lessening the use of flood irrigation.

He pointed that the presence of middlemen in the supply chains of crops was lessening the profits of farmers, adding middlemen were making money at the expense of farmers.

He said farmers could get better prices for their crops by using a mobile phone and IT applications as was done by the fishermen in the past who got good prices for their produce. He also observed that urea prices in the international market were very high but urea prices were kept low by local manufacturers, adding the government kept a stock of urea to keep prices under control.

An increase of one million bales of cotton would add Rs. 100 billion to the national economy, he explained. He lauded the farmers’ community for producing ample crops of rice, wheat, and maize last year.

He called for the implementation of the plant breeder act to improve a variety of seeds and ensure their reliability. President Alvi told that there was great potential for growth in the livestock sector and the government reduced duties and taxes to facilitate the growth of this particular sector.

He said the farmers could earn more by cultivating high-value crops. Crop substitution could be used to grow crops that required less water. He was of the view that corporate farming along with vertical farming could be adopted to develop the agriculture sector on modern lines. He mentioned that the Netherlands which had far less area than Pakistan had now become the second-biggest producer of food in the world by using the latest technology and cultivation methods.
Pakistan had the potential to come at par with other countries in terms of getting higher per acre yield, he opined.

Governor Punjab Chaudhry Sarwar and Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Fakhar Imam also spoke on the occasion and assured that the government would resolve issues faced by the farmers. The minister said the government would form a commission to find ways and means to modernize the agriculture sector. He urged the need for more investment in research in agriculture.

Agriculture expert, Khalid Khokhar, and Chief Executive Officer Fatima Group, Fawad Mukhtar, spoke about the issues of the farmers.