Paradigm Shift in Food Security

PAKISTAN is an agricultural-based country without any focused policy to safeguard the food security incase of natural calamities, global rising prices, and external dynamics and must take note of these implications and should initiate a coordinated programme of action to address the issues with the object of providing a safety net for the welfare of citizens.

PAKISTAN has to make provisions for emergence of any supply constraints worldwide that would lead to panic buying and hoarding at the domestic level, leaving the consumer increasingly exposed to spiraling prices. Therefore, it would be prudent for the Government to consider suitable contingency plans to avert a national shortage of essential food items that may arise otherwise from disruption of normal import patterns. Sugar in recent times and wheat some years ago are blatant testimony to this effect. Acreage has stagnated, output has turned flat and yields continue to be low, with wide regional variations.
PAKISTAN has to plan measures that may primarily focus on boosting the capacity of private sector trade channels to function under difficult conditions. It will also be necessary to take stock of public sector resources that could be deployed to meet the requirements of emergency food distribution.
PAKISTAN needs cool supply chains, better accessible farm to market road networks, new varieties of seeds, training programs for increasing yield per acre, proliferation of non-contaminated cotton, introduction of corporate farming, discouragement of small size of farm and fragmented land holdings, and learning from the best practices of other countries.
PAKISTAN must set up the National Food Security Agency comprising of government officials, agriculturists, agro-economists, and agro-technocrats to prepare contingency plans to provide food security to the citizens.
PAKISTAN must join hands with multi-lateral organizations, such as JICA, ADB, USAID, etc to set up the NFSA. It should have as Terms of Reference items such as assessing present domestic stocks of essential food items to determine shortage levels, setting up of immediate purchase requirements, establishing food storage warehouses and silos, both in private as well as public sectors, proposing fiscal measures as incentives for increased production as well as suggesting alternate revenue mobilization for food imports, if necessary, strict monitoring and surveillance system to discourage hoarding and panic buying, and reviewing and preparing adequacy requirements of existing distribution centers.
PAKISTAN can continue to be a major player in the agricultural field. It exports rice, cotton, and raw cotton among major products. It needs a comprehensive and workable strategy to maintain its position in agriculture. PAKISTAN JAPAN BUSINESS FORUM can also play a paramount role in achievement of these objectives too.

March 09-2011