Daily Times

President Dr Arif Alvi has said that drastic measures are required to secure the agricultural future of Balochistan and public-private partnership should be encouraged for achieving this goal.

Chairing a high-level meeting on agricultural development in the province here at the Governor House, the President said the technical assistance should be sought from SUPARCO for the timely information on various crops grown in the province, while an IT application developed by the federal government could also be helpful in that connection. He said that there is a great potential for development of the agricultural sector in Balochistan, which requires a strategy for imparting skills to the people of the province.

Proper use of available water resources could help in sustainable agricultural development, he said. The President said that fisheries are another sector which has the potential for development and steps on war footings were needed for the purpose.

He pointed out that there is a huge demand for Halal meat all over the world, including China, and stressed the need to explore such markets internationally, which would not only generate sizable revenue for the people attached with the livestock but also for the Balochistan government.

The President said that skilled manpower is required to achieve the goal of agricultural development and the services of the National Skilled University could be availed for imparting skills to the people in the province.

He said apart from agriculture, progress on the development projects under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP) in the province could be easily traced through satellite imagery.

Stressing the need for establishing close coordination among relevant institutions, President Alvi said the Balochistan government should keep liaison with the Federal Ministry of Food Security and Research for the purpose of consultation and assistance to develop agriculture and fisheries sectors. Earlier, Federal Minister for National Food Security and Research Fakhar Imam briefed the meeting about the crops and the potential for agriculture sector’s development in Balochistan.

Balochistan Governor Justice (retd) Amanullah Khan Yasinzai, Provincial Minister Noor Mohammad Dumar, Balochistan Chief Secretary Captain (retd) Fazil Asghar and Secretary Agriculture Qambar Dashti attended the meeting.