Pakistan’s global mango footprint capable of earning huge revenues: President Alvi

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi on Tuesday said that with its best mango produce in the world, Pakistan has the potential to make a bigger export footprint of its “King of Fruits” with the adoption of proper agrarian techniques.

“Introduction of mango’s new varieties through research, quality control and value addition can help Pakistan earn high revenues in the international markets,” the president said in his address at the mango festival held at the Aiwan-e-Sadr.

The mango festival was organised by the Rahim Yar Khan Chamber of Commerce and Industry and the Ministry of Commerce that showcased a wide assortment of local mangoes, ranging from the well-known varieties such as Chaunsa, Sindhri, Dusehri, Anwar Ratol to the uncommon ones such as Coconut Ambri, Surkha Gulab and Samar Bahisht.

President Alvi said that Pakistan’s sweet mangoes could no doubt be presented before the world with great pride and mentioned his “mango diplomacy” where he had sent a gift of mangoes to the world’s rulers, presidents and prime ministers.

This year, President Alvi said, the gift of mangoes has been sent to 37 countries, compared with 17 last year. He stressed that Pakistan needed to take measures to match the world in quality presentation of food produce to boost exports.

To prevent wastage of the perishable fruit, the president said proper techniques of pest control was important before its transportation to the local and international markets.

Converting mangoes into pulp without the use of preservatives could be a good idea to preserve the fruit for local use and export purposes, he added.

The promotion of agricultural sector was also important to ensure food security, which could be an impending challenge in the coming times, the president said, adding that to facilitate the traders, the government has taken effective steps such as ease of doing business, digitalisation of business modes, grant of soft loans and offering entrepreneurship opportunities for women.

On the upcoming threat of the Covid-19 pandemic, the president advised the masses to continue adhering to the precautionary measures, particularly the use of face masks.

“I appeal to you that help Pakistan maintain its edge in overcoming the coronavirus during [the] previous waves of the virus,” he added.

President Alvi along with his wife Begum Samina Alvi visited the stalls of mangoes where traders from Multan, Bahawalpur, Khairpur, Jhang, Mirpurkhas and Hyderabad had put on display the variety of their mangoes.

Earlier, Punjab Minister Bashir Ahmed Khawaja said Rahim Yar Khan, the fifth populated district of Punjab, was the top producer of mangoes in the province.

Having similar geographical distance to all provincial capitals, Rahim Yar Khan was effectively transporting its produce to the rest of the country, he added.

Parliamentary Secretary for Commerce Alia Hamza Malik said that the agriculture sector, as the main pillar of the national economy, contributed 19.2 per cent to GDP and employed 38.5 per cent of the workforce.

She said Pakistan’s mango market offered a promising outlook, as the government was engaging with all the stakeholders and had also set up a working group on mango production with the involvement of farmers, growers, traders and chambers.

The Australian government had recently established two mango processing units in Pakistan for their export to Australia, she added.

Former president of the Rahim Yar Khan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Abdul Rao Mukhtar, said that of the total mango produce of 700,000 tonnes, Rahim Yar Khan alone produced 250,000 tonnes to 300,000 tonnes.

Mukhtar emphasised on setting up special mango zone with the processing units, cold storage chain, air cargo service and pulp-making section to avoid post-harvest loss.