Agriculture fears

According to some media reports, closure of air and land routes due to the coronavirus pandemic is likely to cause 150 million dollars loss to horticulture exports during the next two months. Airlines have either reduced or completely halted their operations to Europe, the Far East and the Middle East, which resulted in a significant reduction in the demand for fruits and vegetables across the world. Likewise, closure of hotels, restaurants and sharp decline in tourism are also hurting horticulture exports.

It is anticipated that if the present situation prevails for the next two months, the overall export of fruits and vegetables from Pakistan is likely to sustain huge loss of 150 million dollars. After the sealing of the western border of the country, fruits and vegetable exports through land routes to Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asian countries have also been suspended. Also, all industrial sectors are under immense pressure due to the coronavirus pandemic and suspension of flights has created a serious threat to the trading sector. Transportation of food stuff via the sea route is also experiencing problems and under these circumstances, only those countries that have adequate food for their local population and a strong agriculture sector can counter such a serious crisis.

Khan Faraz

Peshawar