KARACHI: Pakistan exported 125,000 tonnes of mango — well above the 80,000 export target set for 2020 amid the Covid-19 pandemic — fetching the country $72 million in foreign exchange.

Highlighting that the country exported 45,000 tonnes above the set target, All Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Exporters, Importers and Merchants Association (PFVA) Patron-in-Chief Waheed Ahmed anticipated that within the next one-and-a-half month, an additional 25,000 tonnes of mangoes would be exported before the season ends.

The country exported 130,000 tonnes of mangoes in 2019. Waheed said that during the current season, mango production fell by 35 per cent, bringing the volume to 1.3 million tonnes compared to last year’s 1.8m tonnes.

The PFVA head termed the current mango season as one of the most difficult seasons in the history of exports due to the challenges posed by coronavirus.

He noted that exporters moved to sea and land routes for shipments after airlines shutdown flight operations due to the pandemic and subsequent lockdowns globally.

Afghanistan emerged as one of the top countries which imported Pakistani mangoes while United Arab Emirates, Iran and Oman proved to be major international markets.

Published in Dawn, August 20th, 2020