By Azeem Ahmed Khan

Pakistan should develop a 10-year livestock growth and export strategy with measurable production and export targets as part of efforts to turn the sector into a stronger contributor to food security, rural prosperity and foreign exchange earnings, according to recommendations of the Ministry of National Food Security and Research available with Wealth Pakistan.

The recommendations call for the formulation of a National Livestock Policy Framework accompanied by clear implementation mechanisms and strong public-private sector ownership to provide direction for the sector's long-term development.

The proposed 10-year strategy is envisaged as a roadmap for increasing livestock productivity, strengthening commercialisation and value addition, attracting investment and improving Pakistan's competitiveness in international markets.

The documents identify low productivity, fragmented and largely informal value chains, disease risks, inadequate traceability, limited value addition, regulatory bottlenecks and weak integration with international markets among the major constraints preventing the sector from realising its potential.

The recommendations emphasise setting measurable production and export targets so that progress under the proposed strategy can be assessed against defined outcomes rather than through individual interventions.

They also call for stronger coordination between federal and provincial governments to harmonise policies, regulations and standards and ensure coordinated implementation across the livestock sector.

Regulatory and fiscal barriers affecting investment, formalisation and exports should also be rationalised to create an enabling environment for livestock businesses and encourage greater investment across the value chain.

The proposed policy direction envisages moving the sector progressively from productivity improvements towards commercialisation, formalisation, value addition and export competitiveness.

According to the documents, effective implementation of the proposed measures could improve animal productivity and farmer profitability, strengthen food safety, stimulate private investment and rural economic activity, and increase the livestock sector's potential to generate foreign-exchange earnings.

The recommendations stress that continued policy support and institutional oversight will be important for translating the proposed reforms into coordinated interventions and measurable outcomes for food security, farmer prosperity, investment, economic growth and livestock exports.

Credit: INP-WealthPk