LAHORE:Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) Regional Chairman Muhammad Nadeem Qureshi on Monday urged the government to ensure opening of letters of credit (LCs) of agricultural inputs for the sake of food security.
The SBP (State Bank of Pakistan) had directed the banks to prioritize imports of inputs for agriculture and others. The banks showed reluctance in opening of letters of credit for the import of necessities like agricultural inputs, he disclosed this in a media statement here.
FPCCI requested the authorities concerned to take immediate notice of the situation and direct the commercial banks to open LCs for agricultural inputs including pesticides and seed immediately. It would not only ensure country’s food security but also prevent inflation likely to be caused due to shortage of wheat, rice, maize, fruit and vegetables, as a result of decline in their yield because of unavailability of agricultural inputs, especially seed and pesticides, he maintained.
Nadeem apprehended that any delay in the import of pesticides would affect the future crops in terms of pest management. Such delay, he added, would particularly hit the cotton crop. Other crops which would suffer because of the non-availability of appropriate insecticides included rice, maize and sunflower etc, which were vital for national food security and earning foreign exchange through exports, he added.
Regarding the seed variety, Qureshi said that for the past several years, the private sector had been doing research and development work on the seed and they also had international standard labs, but no protection was being provided for it, therefore government should protect it under public-private partnership.
The government should take appropriate measures for opening of LCs for raw materials of agricultural inputs, he demanded.