Innovative indigenous solutions, and digital integration of agriculture data can play a pivotal role to unlock the potential of regional agriculture trade and support progress towards food security and SDG2, said speakers at a report launch.
The report titled, “Potential of Innovation for Food Security and regional Trade in agriculture”, was launched by Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI) in collaboration with Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI).
Speaking on the occasion, Dr Vaqar Ahmed, SDPI Joint Executive Director, remarked that recurrent climate events, pandemic and supply chain disruptions have caused food price inflation shocks and exacerbated food insecurity in Pakistan and across the region.
Considering these novel challenges, agricultural productivity and regional food security can be leveraged by technological innovations and strengthening regional agricultural trade. He highlighted that 2022 floods have severely undermined the ability of 73% of households in flood affected areas to afford basic nutrition stalling the progress towards SDG2.
Moreover, the situation is much worse for Afghanistan with 95% of the population unable to meet their nutritional demand. The hackathon organized by SPDI under the project provided a platform for startups to network and showcase their ideas and work to public and private sector to advance towards regional agriculture trade integration and food security.
Dr Haroon Sarwar, Economic Consultant, Ministry of National Food Security & Research, lauded SDPI’s initiative to provide a platform for startups working in food security in the form of a Hackathon in 2023. The participation of startups from Balochistan and even Afghanistan was a promising sign for food security.
He emphasized that the current problems confronting agriculture in Pakistan and region is the poor access of small holding farmers to finances. He said that bridging the gap between small farmers and financial institutions can help scale up their profitability and ultimately reduce food insecurity in the country.
Highlighting the regional trade potential, he said, there is a natural appetite for agriculture trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan with both countries having much to offer to each other. However, the trade potential is obstructed by political and strategic barriers.
He said that SDPI and Ministry of Food Security and Research can present a compelling case for enhancing collaboration in research and data sharing in agriculture for both countries and a dashboard can help identify areas for trade collaboration.
Dr Samreen Babar, Associate Professor, Bahria University, said that the Hackathon organized by SDPI provided a platform to students and startups to pitch their innovative ideas and bridged them to mentors for guidance.
She said that bridging the gap between academia, startups, mentors, and partners can help bring innovative indigenous solutions. Building on the idea of data sharing and consolidation, she suggested that developing a mobile application connecting buyers and sellers to facilitate bilateral agriculture trade cannot only boost food security but also support economic development.
Rija Tayyab, Corporate Affairs and Sustainability Manager, Roshan Packages, said that the youth have much more at stake when it comes to climate crisis. She stressed the need for enhancing the capacity of youths to present indigenous solutions for climate induced challenges and developing mechanisms through which these solutions can be scaled up for implementation.
