Horticulture sector demands PHDEC revival under MNFSR

KARACHI: Business leaders on Wednesday demanded of Prime Minister of Pakistan to shift the administrative control of the Pakistan Horticulture Development and Export Company (PHDEC) under Ministry of National Food and Security (MNFSR).

“For the last four years the PHDEC has been almost on the verge of destruction and ministry of commerce is neither seems to be interested in running the company nor reorganising it,” Ahmad Jawad, Secretary General (Federal) of the Businessmen Panel said in a statement.

“Every two years the ministry advertises the vacant post for its CEO and then it again goes silent.”

Jawwad said restructuring and strengthening of PHDEC to restore its professional character has been envisioned as a vital institutional support to the sector, which requires extensive hand-holding.

“…with the approval of the Prime Minister, a board of directors [for the company] was reconstituted in July 2015. The new board later formed a nomination committee for the selection of new CEO but to no avail.,” the official said adding that the PHDEC was only running in ministry files.

Jawad claimed that now commerce division is reportedly mulling altering rules of PHDEC in an effort to appoint its own officer as the CEO.

“The company's prevalent rules do not allow appointment of the CEO from the public sector” Jawwad said.

The BMP secretary general further viewed that at the time of 18th amendment, it was actually recommended that the PHDEC be handed over to MNFSR, which was renamed after 18th amendment because agriculture sector was mostly already handed over to the provinces.

“In view of this, it’s primarily MNFSR’s responsibility to control PHDEC so that this organisation may play its due role, but it continued to remain under the ministry of commence which I personally believe is an injustice to the horticulture sector,” he said.

Jawad also said the cabinet should approve the handover of PHDEC’s administrative control to the MNFSR on immediate basis so that this organisation may again start work to support the sector. Jawwad urged the authorities to kick horticulture sector up on its priority list.