ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms Ahsan Iqbal on Tuesday directed authorities concerned to establish a quick response system to help farmers dealing with cotton crop-related diseases.

The minister said “cotton is the mainstay of our agriculture and textile industry and has a vital role in increasing economic growth and development”. He went on to comment that the drop in cotton yield is a matter of serious concern.

The minister identified climate change and plummeting international commodity prices as major challenges to Pakistan’s agricultural sector and called for efforts to increase productivity and lower input costs.

He expressed these views while chairing a meeting to review the cotton crisis in Pakistan here at the Ministry of Planning, Development and Reforms on Tuesday. The meeting was attended by federal and provincial agriculture and textile officials, researchers and farmers.

The minister highlighted steps taken by the government in the recent federal budget to support the agricultural sector and emphasized the need for research through the China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) to produce high quality seeds to boost productivity.

Mr Ahsan urged all stakeholders to work closely in wake of devolution to coordinate their efforts.

He said the working group will meet on quarterly basis to review implementation of group’s recommendations.

Published in Dawn, July 27th, 2016