The Punjab government wants to bring artificial intelligence into the daily lives of farmers. Parliamentary Secretary Usama Leghari said the plan is to build the groundwork for AI for Punjab farmers within the remaining two and a half years of the tenure. He spoke as chief guest at the Agri Connections Conference and Expo in Lahore on Thursday. Leghari said the government believes in a data and technological revolution in agriculture.
Moreover, farmers could use this technology to forecast their yields and productivity. The government has also declared this the “Year of the Value Chain.” Therefore, the government is encouraging the corporate sector to work with farmers and add value to their products. Farmers would receive a greater share, while businesses would still earn profits.
Adviser to the Federal Finance Minister Adnan Pasha said Pakistan faces two long-term challenges beyond traditional security issues. Those challenges are climate change and population growth. Both are closely linked to food security, water security and wider social concerns. The population could reach 370 million to 390 million over the next two decades, Pasha added. However, he said agricultural transformation cannot rely on the public sector balance sheet alone. He called for public-private partnerships in which the government provides the ecosystem and a risk-sharing framework.
Pasha said the World Bank’s new country partnership framework focuses on the agriculture and climate nexus. This could create investable pipelines instead of isolated initiatives. He also identified certified climate-resilient seeds as an area needing private investment. Additionally, he said Pakistan needs better on-farm water management because water is not an unlimited input.
Pakistan Agricultural Coalition Chief Executive Kazim Saeed said the country imports commodities it has produced for centuries. These include wheat, cotton and lentils. Exports also remain below their potential because of low competitiveness and food safety concerns. Saeed said the sector needs stronger leadership.
World Bank specialist Olivier Durand said agricultural production in Pakistan is highly fragmented. Many small farmers have limited links to markets, processors and off-takers. Meanwhile, around 60 percent of the population struggles to afford a healthy diet. Durand said Pakistan has doubled agricultural production over the past 30 years. Still, the country remains far behind other middle-income countries in fruit and vegetable production. Finally, sessions at the expo covered input markets and supply chain deregulation. Whether AI for Punjab farmers becomes reality will depend on the years ahead.
