USAID launches project to use modern technology for agriculture growth

ISLAMABAD: The USAID Pakistan on Tuesday launched a four-year project of $8.2 million to introduce advanced technologies to Pakistani farmers and help boost their productivity and incomes.

The project, ‘agricultural technology transfer activity’, was launched through collaboration of USAID and the Ministry of National Foods Security and Research. Partnering with roughly 30 of the largest private agri-technology businesses, the initiative will introduce advanced technologies to an estimated 122,500 farmers, whose agricultural sales are projected to reach $8.58 million.

It would help to increase small farmers’ access to markets and their overall development. It will train dealer networks and other demand side partners through technical assistance to improve their marketing and management practices. This will strengthen their linkages with small farmers to address their unique needs.

The project activities also aim at increasing productivity, build resilience to climate change and reduce postharvest losses. At the end of the project implementation period, the expectation is to enhance the capacity of agricultural technology related businesses to commercialize technologies, modernize management practices while adopting sustainable practices and also to increase the overall adoption of agricultural technologies by small farmers.

“This project will help Pakistani farmers realise the full potential of their land and labor,” USAID Mission Director Jerry Bisson said in a statement. Partnership with key private sector players will help connect farmers to each other, new techniques, timely weather data, and the supply chain network – all of which enhances productivity, builds resilience to climate change and reduces post-harvest losses.

The technologies the program will introduce to the horticulture industry include integrated pest management, controlled production, improved genetics and post-harvest handling and packaging. The livestock and daily sectors will benefits from nutrition and breed improvement, including artificial insemination and embryo transplants that will offer rapid improvement in livestock genetics.

“Our partnership with USAID has lasted decades, but with interventions such as these, the pace of development will increase multifold. We hope to support these initiatives over the project lifespan and beyond,” Bisson said.

The introduction and transfer of technology would help the country to enhance productivity through best utilisation of resources. The agriculture sector in Pakistan was badly affected due to lack of awareness of latest technologies. The project would help to commercialise the use of technology in agriculture sector through coordination between farmers and technologies companies. Purpose of the project is to reach about 175,000 stakeholders. Initially, the project would be initiated in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab provinces and later it would be expanded to Balochistan and Sindh.

“We want to improve investment in private sector through creation of linkages between demand and supply side,” Yusaf Zafar, chairman of Pakistan Agricultural Research Council said.