Can corporate farming lead us to prosperity? | The Express Tribune

Transforming from Conventional Farming to Corporate Farming in Pakistan

KARACHI:

Transforming from conventional farming to corporate farming might bring about prosperity, provided that rules are formed and implemented strictly to benefit local communities and local farmers. Corporate farming could revitalise the agriculture sector if the hurdles and de-incentivising weaknesses in the sector are addressed. The country does not have a culture of corporate farming, and this is a new initiative being introduced. Huge areas of cultivable land are being acquired for the project.

The Importance of Corporate Farming for Pakistan

Corporate farming, with its advanced systems and efficient practices, is much needed for Pakistan to ensure increased agricultural productivity and food security. While using such automated systems will be an uphill task due to infrastructural and affordability challenges, it can lead to higher incomes for farmers.

The Role of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC)

The Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) creates a win-win paradigm for Pakistan and its investors through a one-window operation. Pakistan is about to transform its agriculture landscape by transitioning from traditional micro farming culture to cutting-edge, high-yield, and low-cost community-based modernised corporate farming.

Pakistan’s Global Rankings in Agriculture

1. Pakistan is the 15th largest producer in the agriculture sector.
2. Pakistan is the seventh largest producer of wheat.
3. Pakistan is the fifth largest producer of cotton.
4. Pakistan is the sixth largest producer of mango.
5. Pakistan is the fifth largest producer of sugarcane.
6. Pakistan is the 20th largest producer of livestock.
7. Pakistan is the 11th largest market of poultry.
8. Fishery exports increased by 19% in FY2023.
9. Meat exports increased by 29% in FY2023.

The Potential of Corporate Farming

Zeeshan Baig, General Manager of Syngenta Pakistan, said, “Corporate farming can bring prosperity in the form of modern technologies, better practices, enhanced efficiency, and foreign investments in agriculture. Overexploitation of arable lands poses a challenge in all models and can be discouraged by adopting regenerative agricultural practices and land preservation – corporate farming is probably our safest option to do so.” He underscored the importance of understanding the main targets of the agriculture sector: food security, farmers’ profitability, increased exports and raw materials, and mitigation of climate change. Conventional farming falls short in achieving any of these due to inherent inefficiencies. On the other hand, corporate farming offers better utilisation of available resources for maximum gains.

The Importance of Regulations in Corporate Farming

“Absolutely, corporate farming has a lot of potential to attract Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) to Pakistan as some high-value markets such as the Middle East and European Union need other countries to ensure their food requirements. That being said, careful regulations are needed to enhance food security, stabilise prices, ensure fair distribution of benefits to rural communities, and prevent monopolies,” he said. Senior Analyst, Author, and former ambassador M Alam Brohi weighed up pros and cons while presenting suggestions. Instead of huge corporate farming, if Sindh’s land of 52,000 acres (which is being acquired) is distributed with 10 acres to each landless peasant, over 5,000 families would be lifted out of poverty. By this scale, one can see how many landless farming families could become prosperous.

Concerns and Reservations about Corporate Farming

Expressing some reservations about this new technique, he said that the land in Sindh must be in the command area of a canal. However, the land in Cholistan and other desert areas would need a new irrigation system – canals and water courses – and would take water from the Indus Water System upstream, which further reduces the flow of water to Sindh, already facing scarcity of water in both seasons – Kharif and Rabi.

The Challenges and Feasibility of Corporate Farming

“The corporate will be fully operationalised if everything goes according to the managers’ plan within the coming three-to-four years. Inflation will further increase owing to the tough conditionalities of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The value of the Pakistani currency is reduced to pebbles. Poverty has increased. The question is whether these corporate farming projects are public welfare oriented or geared towards another purpose. Would these farms provide their produce at subsidised rates? I don’t think these farmings would be feasible if they market their produce at subsidised cost.

The Potential of Cooperative Farming

Meanwhile, when it comes to cooperative farming, it can be beneficial for all stakeholders since efficient pooling of available resources can be ensured. Utilising the public sector’s available agricultural lands for cooperative purposes will actually boost the scale and efficiency of this model, but concerns over land distribution and equitable benefits must be addressed for sustainable agricultural development.

THE WRITER IS A STAFF correspondent

Published in The Express Tribune, April 29^th, 2024.

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SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. SDG 2: Zero Hunger

   • Target 2.3: By 2030, double the agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers, in particular women, indigenous peoples, family farmers, pastoralists, and fishers, including through secure and equal access to land, other productive resources and inputs, knowledge, financial services, markets, and opportunities for value addition and non-farm employment.
   • Indicator: Increase in agricultural productivity and incomes of small-scale food producers.

2. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

   • Target 8.1: Sustain per capita economic growth in accordance with national circumstances and, in particular, at least 7 percent gross domestic product growth per annum in the least developed countries.
   • Indicator: Gross domestic product (GDP) growth rate.

3. SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

   • Target 12.2: By 2030, achieve the sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources.
   • Indicator: Progress towards sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources.

4. SDG 13: Climate Action

   • Target 13.1: Strengthen resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters in all countries.
   • Indicator: Resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards and natural disasters.

Table: SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

Analysis

The article discusses the potential of corporate farming in Pakistan’s agriculture sector and its impact on various aspects of sustainable development. Based on the content of the article, the following SDGs, targets, and indicators can be identified:

1. SDG 2: Zero Hunger

The article highlights the need for increased agricultural productivity and food security in Pakistan. It mentions that corporate farming, with its advanced systems and efficient practices, can lead to higher incomes for farmers and ensure increased agricultural productivity. This aligns with SDG 2, which aims to end hunger, achieve food security, improve nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.

2. SDG 8: Decent Work and Economic Growth

The article mentions that corporate farming can bring prosperity through modern technologies, better practices, enhanced efficiency, and foreign investments in agriculture. It also discusses the potential for attracting Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) to Pakistan. These aspects relate to SDG 8, which focuses on promoting sustained, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment, and decent work for all.

3. SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

The article emphasizes the need for sustainable management and efficient use of natural resources in the context of corporate farming. It mentions the importance of adopting regenerative agricultural practices and land preservation to discourage overexploitation of arable lands. This aligns with SDG 12, which aims to ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns.

4. SDG 13: Climate Action

The article discusses the importance of corporate farming in mitigating climate change. It mentions that corporate farming offers better utilization of available resources for maximum gains and can contribute to the resilience and adaptive capacity to climate-related hazards. This relates to SDG 13, which focuses on taking urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.

Overall, the article highlights the potential of corporate farming in addressing multiple sustainable development goals, including zero hunger, decent work and economic growth, responsible consumption and production, and climate action.

Copyright: Dive into this article, curated with care by SDG Investors Inc. Our advanced AI technology searches through vast amounts of data to spotlight how we are all moving forward with the Sustainable Development Goals. While we own the rights to this content, we invite you to share it to help spread knowledge and spark action on the SDGs.

Fuente: tribune.com.pk

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