PM says full monitoring of food supply, demand needs to be done to ensure national food requirements are met
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif chaired a meeting on Sunday to review Pakistan’s domestic food situation and the export of surplus commodities as the Gulf War disrupts supplies PHOTO: PMO
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday directed the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) to take necessary measures to export food to Gulf countries via maritime routes as the Iran war disrupts food supply in the region, according to a statement released by the Prime Minister’s Office.
The statement said Prime Minister Shehbaz chaired a meeting to review Pakistan’s domestic food situation and the export of surplus commodities in view of the changed regional dynamics due to the US-Israel war against Iran.
The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary Ishaq Dar, Union Ministers Jam Kamal Khan, Rana Tanveer Hussain and Ahad Khan Cheema, Special Assistant Haroon Akhtar, senior officials, provincial chief secretaries and representatives of private sector associations.
The prime minister directed that “full monitoring of food supply and demand must be carried out to ensure that national food requirements are met.” Officials briefed the meeting that Pakistan has “abundant reserves of food and there is no shortage of any essential commodity.”
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Prime Minister Shehbaz highlighted that disruptions in global supply chains had “increased Pakistan’s export capacity in the region,” and directed that the supply of food to the Gulf countries and their food security be ensured.
He also called for a comprehensive plan “to export surplus food to the Gulf countries without affecting Pakistan’s domestic food needs” and stressed that “high standards must be maintained” in these exports, the statement added.
A committee will be set up to review the situation on a day-to-day basis, while ambassadors and trade officers stationed in the Gulf countries have been instructed to remain proactive.
The briefing, the statement said, included details of Pakistan’s extensive export potential across its agriculture sector, including crops, meat, poultry, dairy and seafood.
