Out of wheat

Pakistan should prepare itself for a full-blown wheat crisis in the upcoming months. The situation has become even graver because of an uptick in international costs within the wake of the Ukraine war. In Pakistan, the current wheat production is somewhere close to 26.2 million tonnes against the target of 28.9 million tonnes. The federal government has decided to import a minimum of three million tonnes of wheat to stabilize the market and meet the demand of 30.8 million tonnes. Wheat shortages and increasing imports call for immediate measures that can deal with factors such as water shortages, poor farm management practices, and effects of climate change, which have bogged down the agriculture sector.

There is an urgent need to ban wheat exports to stabilize wheat prices and deal with the supply gaps. Also, effective measures should be taken to curb the menace of wheat smuggling out of Pakistan.

Khan Faraz

Peshawar