By Ajmal Khan Yousafzai
Islamabad: Xinjiang-agriculture development model could help to improve cotton production in Pakistan, said Iqrar Ahmad Khan, former Vice Chancellor of Agriculture University.
He was speaking at a live forum jointly organised by China Economic Net and Machinery Engineering Corporation of China to mark the launch of China-Pakistan Agricultural and Industrial Cooperation Information platform.
Khan said that the Xinjiang model was a role model for Pakistan where cotton production is facing serious challenges and annual yield in continuously declining.
He said that Pakistan not only needed seeds from China but the whole package of Xinjiang model for enhancing cotton production.
The former VC also highlighted various areas of prospective cooperation between China and Pakistan in agricultural and industrial spheres.
He emphasised the need of introducing technology in agriculture in rural areas, citing lack of technology as a reason behind the failure of drip irrigation in Pakistan.
Khan stressed that agricultural development should translate into development of rural areas.
He also stressed about expanding the scope of agricultural research with the help of Chinese experts, adding that the Pakistani climate had proved suitable for various foreign plants.
Strawberry plantation has been a success story in Pakistan and the same will be the case with Chinese plant species if imported under CPEC cooperation, he said.
Several experts and government officials from both China and Pakistan participated in the online event, including Chinese ambassador to Pakistan Nong Rong and Pakistan ambassador to China Moen ul Haq, who reiterated commitments to further improving bilateral cooperation in several sectors.
