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Agricultural/Rural Development in Pakistan Ashar Shahzad Introduction • Agriculture is the backbone of Pakistan’s economy. • It constitutes 21.5%1 of the total GDP of Pakistan. 45%2 of total labor force of Pakistan is employed in agricultural sector. • Pakistan has a population of 184.35 million3 with growth rate of 2%4 per annum. • With such a big population having a medium level of growth rate, it is a challenge for the government to maintain an agricultural growth rate above the population growth rate and feed the masses. • 1. http://finance.gov.pk/survey/chapters_13/02-Agriculture.pdf page no: 17, accessed on 20 April 2014. • 2. http://finance.gov.pk/survey/chapters_13/02-Agriculture.pdf page no: 17, accessed on 20 April 2014. • 3. http://www.pk.undp.org/content/pakistan/en/home/countryinfo/ , accessed on 20 April 2014 • 4. http://www.pk.undp.org/content/pakistan/en/home/countryinfo/ , accessed on 20 April 2014 Growth in Agriculture in Pakistan Production of Important Crops in Pakistan Agriculture and Pakistan’s water Resources- Identifying Challenges Agriculture and Pakistan’s water Resources- Identifying Challenges (Continued) Agriculture and Pakistan’s water Resources- Identifying Challenges (Continued) Livestock, Poultry Production and Fisheries- Growth and Bottlenecks • Together these three sectors are an important subsector agriculture development/rural up liftmen in Pakistan. • Pakistan is an exporter of halal meet ( chicken and red meat) and fisheries. • The problem in this sector in Pakistan is that it is unorganized, not mechanized and access to credit is very low. It has a huge potential to grow. Most of farmers/owners of livestock lack knowledge to do smart business in livestock. • Improvement in this sector will help to improve rural poverty in Pakistan Recommendations for Agriculture/Rural Development in Pakistan • Canal irrigated agriculture, Large dams needed to store water for lean period/time. • Yield per acre is low. Need to use high quality seeds, pesticides, machines and more fertilizers. • Need to invest in agriculture research and universities. • Need to establish agriculture credit market at gross roots level ( micro-financing). Recommendations for Agriculture/Rural Development in Pakistan (Continued) • Need to develop agriculture infrastructure like canals, distributaries, farm roads and highways. • Need to remove corruption, nepotism and favoritism from the system to achieve efficiency and more productivity, • Need to establish transparent and robust institutions for regulating prices, markets and water resources allocations. • Need to educate farmers and provide vocational training in livestock, Poultry and fisheries agrobased industries.