This was claimed by the Additional Secretary Agriculture (Task Force) Benish Fatima Sahi while speaking at the launch of the Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) profile for Punjab province here on Thursday. Punjab Agriculture Department, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and The International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) have jointly prepared the profile.
Benish Fatima Sahi, Additional Secretary Agriculture (Task Force), Dr Anjum Ali Director General Agriculture (Ext & AR), Syed Zafaryaab Haider DGA (Water Management), along with other high rank officers of department and FAO representatives attended the meeting.
The profile highlights climate smart agriculture strategies that can help mitigate and adapt to extreme weather events in Punjab, while at the same time contribute to increased agricultural productivity and food security in the province. It emphasizes the need for agricultural diversification, reducing dependence on cash crops and switching to higher value nutritious crops. It also points out the urgent need to improve water management strategies, increase irrigation efficiency and reduce water wastage. In addition, it provides an assessment of the provincial policy and institutional environment for CSA identifies barriers and solutions for province and district-level policy design and implementation.
Farrukh Toirov, Deputy FAO Representative in Pakistan said: "It is critical to take pre-emptive measures to address challenges presented by climate change to the agriculture sector, food security and economic growth of Pakistan and its provinces. The CSA profile for Punjab is a step in that direction. CSA initiatives sustainably increase productivity, enhance resilience and reduce or remove greenhouse gases.