Prime Minister says comprehensive monitoring of food supply and demand must be carried out to ensure national food needs are met
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday chaired a meeting to review Pakistan’s domestic food situation and the export of surplus products as the Gulf War disrupts supplies. PHOTO: PMO
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday ordered the Pakistan National Shipping Corporation (PNSC) to take necessary steps to export food products to Gulf countries via sea routes as the war in Iran disrupts food supplies in the region, according to a statement issued by the Prime Minister’s Office.
The statement said that Prime Minister Shehbaz chaired a meeting to review Pakistan’s domestic food situation and export of surplus commodities in light of changing regional dynamics due to the US-Israel war against Iran.
The meeting was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, federal 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 ordered that “comprehensive monitoring of food supply and demand be carried out to ensure that national food needs are met”. The officials informed the meeting that Pakistan has “abundant food reserves and there is no shortage of any essential commodities”.
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Prime Minister Shehbaz highlighted that disruptions in global supply chains had “increased Pakistan’s export capacity in the region” and demanded that food supplies to Gulf countries and their food security be ensured.
He also called for a comprehensive plan “to export surplus food to 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 formed to review the situation on a daily basis, while ambassadors and trade officials stationed in Gulf countries have been instructed to remain proactive.
The briefing, according to the statement, included details on Pakistan’s vast export potential in its agricultural sector, including crops, meat, poultry, dairy and seafood.
