n Pakistan, economic progress and development has been mainly dependent on its agriculture sector. Effective reform of the agriculture sector needs to be undertaken on an emergency basis.

Being the largest province of the country by area, Balochistan holds unique opportunities to improve the economic prospects of the country.

Tourism is central to the economy of southern Balochistan where clean, eye-catching beaches have not been explored fully. The province has a coastline 750 kilometres long. Fishing is a good source of income for the people who dwell in this part of the province. According to recent estimations, fishery resources have a value of over $1 billion.

Then there are the beautiful date gardens in the Makran division, i.e., Gwadar, Kech and Panjgur. The only modern date-processing plant in Pakistan is situated in Panjgur. Several types of dates produced and processed here are exported to domestic and international markets.

Pakistan’s largest natural gas reserves are also in Balochistan. These accounts for more than 50 percent of the country’s total reserves. The Sui gas field has been producing gas to the country since 1952. Reko Diq and Saindak are rich in mineral wealth.

The deep-sea port being developed at Gwadar is the pivot around which the China Pakistan Economic Corridor revolves. The plains in Nasirabad division feature rice and wheat fields.

The northern part of Balochistan grows plentiful fruits. Apples, grapes, pomegranates, cherries and watermelons of high quality produced here are sold across the country.

The province produces 85 percent of the country’s grapes. Balochistan has the potential to produce 25 million tonnes of fruits and vegetables annually. Helping the farmers improve their productivity can help boost the economy.

Balochistan’s economy is the least developed among the country’s four provinces. Since the start of the 21^st Century, the contribution of the agriculture sector has been in constant decline in the country in general and in the province in particular. Several reasons can be identified for this decline.

Most of the farmers in Balochistan use water extracted from tube wells as the primary source for watering their fields or gardens. Power outages and loadshedding disrupt the irrigation and make meeting the water needs harder.

Keeping in view the vast area of Balochistan and the scattered population, markets are far from the rural areas housing the gardens. This makes bringing fruits and vegetables to the market a tough job.

As of today, electricity is available for only 10 hours a day in urban areas. As a result, farmers tend to rely on petrol or diesel to run generators to extract groundwater.

The rising oil prices and the higher cost of grid electricity are changing the economic parameters for the farmers. The unmet energy needs are an important factor in the decline of the agricultural sector.

Additionally, since most of the farmers are illiterate, they follow traditional methods of irrigation and farming. Most of them are not aware of modern techniques that can improve the irrigation efficiency. This results in the waste of a significant amount of water.

Water is scarce. Droughts have hit the region in the past. Still, farmers have yet to adopt drip irrigation and are persisting with inefficient and wasteful flooding methods. Mismanagement of water and poor farming techniques reduce agricultural production and hinder economic growth.

Lack of infrastructure is another area where farmers receive negligible support. Given the vast area of Balochistan and the scattered population, local markets are far from the rural areas where most of the orchards are located. Bringing fruits and vegetables to the market is therefore a tough job owing to the poor road connectivity between the two. The rising prices of petrol and diesel oil directly impact the amount of produce brought to the markets.

Monsoon floods in 2022 brought a third of the country under water. According to the United Nations, the loss and damage amounted to $30 billion. Sindh and Balochistan were the hardest hit provinces. Roads in many areas were swept away and date orchards in Makran division were destroyed. Wheat and rice fields in Nasirabad division remained under water for a long time.

In Quetta and Zhob divisions, the devastation was on an equally high scale. Both the quality and quantity of grapes was affected.

The agriculture sector is the backbone of national economy. Development plans for the agriculture sector should include fulfilling the infrastructure needs of the farmers. This includes energy needs and road infrastructure. They also need access to modern technology and training to enable them to benefit from it. Additionally, the development plans need to be climate-resilient.

The writer tweets @DawoodKhanHere and can be reached at dawoodkhan0666@gmail.com