The government has started implementing comprehensive reforms to make food and agricultural governance more transparent, digital and publicly accountable, with a focus on curbing corruption, limiting discretionary powers and strengthening import and export systems, the Ministry of National Food Security and Research said here Sunday.
In a statement, the ministry said that 22 out of 31 registrations, licences, certificates and other permits had been fully automated. The digitalisation drive has been implemented across six attached departments dealing with plants, animals and seeds, significantly reducing human intervention, improving traceability and minimising systemic loopholes.
According to the statement, Federal Minister for National Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain had specially emphasized a rules-based system, verifiable decision-making and enhanced inter-agency coordination as key pillars of the reform agenda.
As part of the reforms, the Department of Plant Protection has been modernised, laboratory capacity enhanced, operational controls tightened and alignment ensured with international phytosanitary standards. The objective, the ministry said, was to strengthen biosecurity and safeguard Pakistan’s export credibility.
The ministry has also improved import conditions for methyl bromide on scientific grounds, leading to a reduction in costs for importers. As a result, exporters of cotton, grains, pulses and other commodities are saving approximately Rs30,000 to Rs40,000 per container.
In one case related to methyl bromide, a suspicious import procedure was identified through internal scrutiny and third-party verification, the statement said adding the licence of the concerned company was suspended, and in coordination with Pakistan Customs, four consignments worth about $1 million were stopped at the port before clearance. Disciplinary action has also been initiated against those responsible.
To protect export quality, the ministry has adopted a zero-tolerance policy against sanitary and phytosanitary violations. Under strict monitoring and an improved traceability system, three consignments totalling 6.2 metric tonnes of mangoes being sent to Norway were seized after attempts were made to export them without fulfilling mandatory requirements. Penalties were imposed on violators, who were also barred from exports for a specified period. In the wheat sector, standard operating procedures have been strengthened, documentation verification improved and monitoring enhanced through provincial data sharing. Officers have been deployed at key check-posts to prevent the movement of fake wheat consignments.
The ministry has intensified its crackdown against fake and uncertified seeds. So far, 392 companies have been blacklisted for selling counterfeit seeds. Progress is also under way on the establishment of the National Seed Development and Regulatory Authority, while performance-based licensing is being introduced to ensure compliance with regulations.
To improve oversight of the sugar sector, measures including cost assessments, joint action against hoarding and imports to increase supply have been undertaken. The ministry is also considering partial deregulation of the sugar sector, while maintaining safeguards to protect small farmers and low-income consumers.