Pakistan is looking to deepen agricultural ties with Russia through technology transfer, local production, joint research, breeding programmes and skills development rather than relying solely on imports of finished agricultural products.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan is seeking to expand agricultural cooperation with Russia beyond conventional trade, with a focus on technology transfer, local production, joint research, seed development and capacity building for Pakistani agricultural experts.
Minister for National Food Security and Research Rana Tanveer Hussain said on Wednesday that Pakistan wanted its agricultural partnership with Russia to generate greater domestic value by facilitating the transfer of modern technologies and expertise to the country.
He said cooperation should extend beyond the import of finished agricultural products and include opportunities for local manufacturing and production, collaborative research and development, breeding programmes and training for Pakistani professionals.
The minister highlighted the potential for stronger collaboration in agricultural technology and seed development, areas that could support Pakistan’s efforts to improve productivity, strengthen agricultural capacity and modernize farming practices.
Greater cooperation in research and breeding could also help facilitate the development and adoption of crop varieties suited to local growing conditions, while technical exchanges could strengthen the expertise of Pakistani researchers and agriculture-sector professionals.
The proposed approach reflects Pakistan’s broader interest in moving from trade based primarily on the exchange of agricultural commodities towards partnerships that create domestic capabilities and longer-term technological benefits.
Closer engagement with Russian institutions and agricultural technology providers could provide opportunities for knowledge sharing, technical cooperation and investment across different segments of Pakistan’s agriculture sector.
The emphasis on local production and joint research also points towards a model in which international agricultural cooperation contributes not only to meeting immediate supply requirements but also to strengthening Pakistan’s domestic agricultural ecosystem. For Pakistan, deeper agricultural cooperation with Russia could therefore open new avenues for investment, technology adoption, seed development and human-resource capacity building while supporting efforts to enhance the productivity and resilience of the agriculture sector.
