islamabad – Pakistan’s Prime Minister emphasized the need for strategic agricultural development,focusing on export diversification,improved infrastructure,and value addition to enhance global competitiveness. The initiative seeks to leverage Chinese expertise to achieve an agricultural trade surplus.
Pakistan’s Agricultural Development Strategy
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Pakistan is prioritizing a thorough overhaul of its agricultural sector to achieve a trade surplus, focusing on increased yields, reduced costs, and improved product quality. This strategy,as outlined by the Prime Minister,centers on learning from China’s successes in agriculture and related fields.
The plan specifically highlights the importance of carefully selecting crops for cultivation and export, building robust value chains, investing in cold storage and warehousing facilities, and adding value to agricultural products before export.These measures aim to position Pakistani produce more effectively in the international market.
As of January 20, 2026, there have been no reported meaningful changes to this stated strategy. The Prime Minister’s Office website remains the primary source for official announcements regarding agricultural policy.
Key Areas for Enhancement
The Prime Minister identified several critical areas requiring immediate attention to modernize Pakistan’s agricultural sector. These include improving infrastructure, adopting advanced technologies, and fostering collaboration with international partners.
- Crop Selection & Export Strategy: Focusing on high-value crops with strong export potential.
- Value Chain Development: Strengthening linkages between farmers,processors,and exporters.
- infrastructure Investment: expanding cold storage and warehousing capacity to reduce post-harvest losses. The Trade Development Authority of Pakistan is involved in initiatives to improve export infrastructure.
- Value Addition: Processing agricultural products to increase their market value.
China’s Role in pakistan’s Agricultural Modernization
China’s advancements in agriculture, information technology, artificial intelligence, manufacturing, and export competitiveness serve as a model for Pakistan. The prime Minister specifically requested support from Chinese experts to help implement the agricultural development strategy.
The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) already includes agricultural cooperation as a key component. The CPEC Authority website details ongoing projects related to agricultural modernization,including technology transfer and infrastructure development. For example,a 2023 CPEC project focused on establishing model farms to demonstrate advanced agricultural techniques.
Agricultural Trade Surplus Goal
Pakistan aims to generate an agricultural trade surplus by increasing yields, lowering production costs, and improving the quality of its agricultural exports. this goal is contingent on triumphant implementation of the outlined strategies and continued collaboration with China.
In fiscal year 2023-2024, Pakistan’s agricultural exports totaled approximately $4.7 billion. The Pakistan Bureau of Statistics provides detailed trade data. Achieving a trade surplus will require a substantial increase in export earnings and a reduction in agricultural imports.
