News from Pakistan

Agriculture sector remains worst hit in last 5 years Despite having an agricultural economy, Pakistan’s agriculture sector remained the worst hit and most neglected area of the economy in the last five y... US keen to promote agriculture in Pakistan: Ambassador Olson “Since the 1950s, the United States has been working to support agriculture in Pakistan by introducing the orange and helping to double the country’ w... Agriculture sector to be developed on modern lines KARACHI: Farmers are the backbone of our national economy, said caretaker Sindh Agriculture Minister NK Lohana while addressing a meeting with small-s... Govt fails to deliver tractors to farmers The farmers whose names were drawn in the government’s tractor scheme have not received the tractors yet. As per the scheme, those whose names wer... Agriculture: suicide or survival With a population of over 190 million and growing, Pakistan is under increasing pressure on many fronts with food production, the provision of water, ... Recent rain boon for wheat, other crops The recent spell of rains would prove as beneficial for the wheat crop which has been cultivated over 20 million acres of land in the country. Paki... Pakistan crops' production targets not achieved Terming the year 2012 as bleakest year for Agriculture, Agri Forum Pakistan (AFP) claimed that the sector suffered Rs 219 billion losses this year in ... Agriculture: humic acid as a remedy Agriculture has been the mainstay of Pakistan’s economy for many years, though in recent years its importance has somewhat declined. There are sev... Food security: ‘Govt pursuing pro-agri policies’ Government is pursuing agricultural policies to ensure food security in the country and improve living standards of small farmers,” said Prime Ministe... Experts stress on more investment in agricultural R&D Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) Chairman Dr Iftikhar Ahmad on Wednesday said Pakistan needs more investment in agricultural research and ... Agriculture suffers as substandard seeds flood market The agricultural experts have said that developing countries like Pakistan would have to adopt genetically modified/biotech crops in the shortest poss... Agriculture sector under threat in Islamabad A report by the federal ministry for environment in Pakistan leaked to the media has warned yet again of increased risks from climate change to the ag... Pakistan, Italy ink agreement for olive farming A three-year project has been launched under the debt-swap agreement between Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) and the Italian government f... Women farmers demand right to land ownership While commemorating World Food Day, women farmers from different parts of the country, in collaboration with ActionAid Pakistan, on Tuesday arranged a... Pakistan is now a wheat exporting country: Zardari The government achieved remarkable successes in the agriculture sector, wheat production in Pakistan reached highest-ever level of 25 million tons and... Govt accords highest priority to agriculture: Zardari President Asif Ali Zardari has said the government has accorded highest priority to agriculture and facilitation the farmer community. In his messa... Sheep could be spared cull in Pakistan A Court in Pakistan has been presented with evidence that could see thousands of Australian sheep spared from being slaughtered on health grounds. ... Livestock suffers from diseases due to fodder shortage The country’s livestock is suffering from diseases and weight loss due to fodder shortage in the rain-hit areas of upper Sindh, according to official ... US help strengthens farming business Sixty four specialists of the Ministries of Agriculture from Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, Gilgit Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), Sindh, and Balochista... Black sheep in Pakistan-Australia trade ties A delay in resolving amicably issues in import of Australian sheep, that were suspected to be infected, could hurt trade ties between Pakistan and Aus... Pakistan to cull 21,000 infected sheep Pakistan is to cull thousands of Australian sheep after they were found to be infected with harmful bacteria, the city's top administration official s... Pakistan and Korea ready for joint agriculture ventures South Korean investors on Monday showed interest for joint ventures in agriculture sector, as Pakistani mangoes have great demand in South Korean mark... 4 birds die as toll rises to 124 Another four peacocks died of rani khait disease on Tuesday, despite tall claims by the Wildlife Department, poultry experts and provincial government... Poultry sector attractive for investment Vice Chancellor of the University of Veterinary and Animal Sciences (UVAS) Prof Dr Talat Naseer. Pasha has said that poultry sector is the most att... Outages raise poultry industry cost The crippling long-hour electricity loadshedding coupled with scorching heat has hit the poultry industry hard as each unit of electricity at poultry ... Pakistan desperately needs innovations like biotechnology Agriculture scientists, biotechnologists and farmers have said that Pakistan desperately needs innovations like biotechnology to address challenges in... Agri sector exhibits 3.1pc growth this year The agriculture sector has exhibited growth of 3.1 percent during last ten months of current fiscal year mainly due to positive growth in agri-related... Boosting national economy: need to diversify agriculture, manufacturing sectors' products stressed Former President Federation Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), Chaudhry Saeed stressed the need to diversify existing manufacturing se... Untaxed agriculture sector enjoying subsidies State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) former Governor Shahid Kardar on Wednesday pointed out that agricultural sector is not being taxed in country due to the ... Demand grows for agriculture credit Karachi—Agricultural credit disbursement by banks surged by 13.11 percent on year-on-year basis to Rs 255.027 billion in the first eleven months (July... Govt urged to treat agriculture as industry Lahore—Growers have urged the government to treat agriculture at par with the industry while fixing the power outage hours as this sector not only ens... Growers protest non-supply of bardana Growers of the area have protested against the non-supply of Bardana (empty sacks) and called upon the federal government to ensure purchase of every ... Agriculture need investment in new seeds In an effort to increase crop yield for achieving food security, massive investment is needed in introducing new varieties of seeds and improving farm... Growth in agriculture credit demanded Agricultural credit disbursement by banks surged by 15.29 percent on year-on-year basis to Rs 223.845 billion in the first ten months (July April) of ... Recent rain damaged wheat crop Farmers in rural areas of Taxila, Hassanabdal, taking advantage of interval in freakish weather, have started harvesting and threshing wheat crop. ... Shahbaz lauds farmers for record wheat growth Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif has said that farmers have achieved record wheat crop by running tube-wells with costly diesel and purch... Resources sought for livestock Veterinary specialists have underscored the need for enhancement of resources to develop livestock and dairy sector and called for taking proactive st... Pakistan urged to ban US imports Dr Hamid Jalil former CEO Punjab Agriculture and Meat Company (PAMCO) has said that after the confirmation of Mad Cow Disease in California farms by t... Gov't to miss growth target The National Accounts Committee (NAC) on Thursday forecasted that government would once again miss the revised target economic growth set for the curr... Sindh farmers get 6000 tractors Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah has said that the agriculture is the backbone of our province’s economy and the Sindh government was doi... Wheat storages yet to be built Like last year, this year again billions of rupees worth of wheat, to be purchased by the Punjab Food Department, will be kept in open spaces as the p... Agro waste can resolve energy crisis In order to overcome energy crisis, the government should utilise agricultural waste to produce bio-ethanol and bio-diesel by installing the plants fo... Banks must adopt agricultural financing Executive Director, State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) Muhammad Ashraf Khan,has emphasized upon the banks to adopt agricultural financing as a viable busine... Pakistan lags behind in biotech agriculture Pakistan, Thailand and Indonesia have chosen a cautious approach and lag behind in adopting biotechnology for enhancing agriculture production, while ... Wheat output target unlikely to be achieved The government estimates wheat production amounting to 24.02 million tons this year, fairly sufficing country’s annual requirement of noting les... President promises ownership rights President Asif Ali Zardari has assured that the government will undertake every possible measure for solution of the dispute of ownership rights of Ok... Mini dams being constructed to boost agriculture Mini dams are being constructed for storage of rain water and irrigation for crops to boost agriculture in the rural areas of the Federal Capital. Pakistan behind many countries in crop yield The Statistical Book 2011 of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reveals that Pakistan is way behind in wheat, rice, sugarcane ... Govt to import hybrid wheat varieties Pakistan is thinking on importing hybrid wheat varieties from China to boost up its local yield... WB approved $1b to boost electric supply The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved two projects on Tuesday totalling US$1.09 billion aimed at supporting Pakistan’s gr...