ISLAMABAD - Speakers at a conference here on Tuesday urged upon the SAARC member countries to prioritise food security strategies and invest in their agricultural sectors to reduce poverty.
The three-day SAARC Regional Conference titled “New Frontiers in Agricultural Genomics and Biotechnology” was organized by Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) and National Institute for Genomics and Advance Biotechnology with an aim to highlight the food security issue and seek possible solutions to the food scarcity.
On the occasion, Federal Minister for Religious Affairs, Khursheed Ahmad Shah lauded the role of PARC and other agricultural scientists, saying that they were playing a contributing towards alleviating poverty and ensuring food security to meet the challenges.
South Asia with over 40 percent of the world’s poor and 35 percent of the world’s under-nourished, has the highest concentration of poverty and hunger in the world, remarked Minister of State for National Food Security and Research, Sardar Moaazam Ali Jatoi.
“There is need to develop a comprehensive approach based on latest technologies and research to meet the food security challenges in SAARC member countries,” he said. The minister said that greatest challenge to humanity in the 21st century is to meet the food needs.
Speaking on the occasion, renowned bio-technologist Dr Kausar Abdul Malik said that there is a need to remove the legal obstacles for development of agricultural sector.
Chairman, Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC), Naveed Salimi said that Pakistan and India are only two countries which have commercialised genetically modified/engineered crops. Pakistan has joined the club of biotech crops growing countries in 2010 with the approval of Bt-cotton cultivation and is currently ranked at 8th position among the 29th countries, he added. He said there are clear indications that this technology will have a significant role in future of economic growth of SAARC countries.
Speaking on the occasion, Chaudhry Nazir, MNA and Chief Patron of Alladin Group of Companies, said that biotechnology is the only tool for the agriculture enhancement in the country.
Prof Shahana Urooj, Pro-vice chancellor of Karachi University, remarked that the future of the agriculture is dependent on the biotechnology.
Different research papers were presented on the occasion by local as well as representatives from the SAARC countries. Scholars including Ghulam Ali, Director NIGAB, Dr Zafar, M Yousaf also shared their knowledge about the biotechnology with the participants of the conference.