Conference on rice trade held

KARACHI: Adnan Pasha Siddiqui, chief of staff to President Habib Bank at a global conference on Sustainable Rice Finance threw light on economic and strategic benefits of successful global rice trade and the role Pakistan’s agri and finance sector could play in it.

Siddiqui was the only speaker from Pakistan at the international event as part of rice week organised by Sustainable Rice Platform (SRP). The platform aims to promote involvement of private sector finance to expand and grow rice agriculture and trade.

The bank official shared HBLs interest and plans for sustainable development finance in food crops, especially rice, which was an export-oriented commodity and one of Pakistan’s major exports. Subject matter experts on SRP and food security including those at FAO and UN as well as from China, India, Brazil, US and Netherlands shared world views on how to augment the agri value chains, and learn from technical best practices for implementation by leveraging appropriate impact financing.