April 06, 2007	Friday	Rabi-ul-Awwal 17, 1428

LAHORE, April 5: Pakistan is in the process of evolving a “permanent” wheat export policy and locating markets for it, says Federal Minister for Food, Agriculture and Livestock Sikandar Hayat Khan Bosan.

Addressing the members of the Agriculture Journalists Association (AJA) here on Thursday, the minister said that the government had also decided to let private sector export wheat as it was much more efficient than the public sector.

This year, he said, the government was expecting a bumper crop. It had fixed a target of 22.5 million tons, but it, all probability, would cross that target. The government had also decided to export wheat this year, but it would fix the quantity (to be exported) by mid-May.

The government would export this wheat through private sector by providing it enabling environment.

“Negotiations are underway with different countries in this regard. There are many countries in the region including Iran, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh importing wheat”.

Mr Bosan insisted that there would be no ban on inter-provincial and inter-district movement of wheat this season. Different agencies involved in procurement had finalised arrangements. Sixty per cent gunny bags required for procurement had reached the centres and the rest would be reaching shortly.

The government is duty-bound to ensure wheat procurement at Rs425 per maund. Precisely for this reason, it has enhanced official targets; Sindh would purchase 700,000 tons and also make arrangements for procuring another 300,000 tons. Pakistan Agriculture storage and Services Corporation would procure 1.3 million tons and the Punjab has been instructed to purchase till the last grain. The Passco has also been directed to procure wheat in Districts Naseerabad and Jafferabad of Balochistan.

“The policy fertiliser subsidy would continue,” he said and added: “Let there be no doubts about the government policy. The subsidy regime would continue and would be adjusted to market realities in order to facilitate farmers”.

The government, the minister added, has not only continuing with subsidy on DAP but has increased it from Rs250 per bag to Rs400 per bag. It is also helping installation of two new plants which should reverse current ratio of 70 per cent export and 30 per cent domestic production.

The minister claimed that the government was launching “crop maximisation” plan, replicating earlier project by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), and it had earmarked Rs9 billion for the purpose. Under the FAO plan, wheat production in the villa-ges went up by 10 maunds per acre.