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PAKISTAN, a South Asian country facing the Arabian Sea, with 796,000 km2 in area, is largely mountainous and semiarid. However, on the eastern side, where Pakistan borders India, the Indus River runs nearly the full length of the country. Most agricultural activities are concentrated on its banks, as is most of the population. Arable land is around one-quarter of the total. Agriculture occupies 44% of the workforce and accounts for 25% of the GDP. The main crops are cotton and wheat.
General information
- GNI per capita PPP$, 2000: 1,860
- Internal renewable water resources: 88.1 km3
- Incoming water flow: 410 km3
- Main food consumed: wheat, meat, rice, maize, and fruits
- Rice consumption, 1999: 14.6 kg milled rice per person per year
Production constraints
Yield has increased steadily during the last five years, but in 2000 it was still low. The major constraints to sustainable rice production are
- Imbalance in the use of crop inputs
- The dominant use of varieties with high grain quality (basmati), especially in the Kalar tract
- Low plant populations
- Waterlogging and salinity
- Shortage of irrigation water
- Yield losses caused by insects, pests, diseases, and weeds
- Inadequate and inefficient postharvest operations
- Cold damage to the rice crop because of cool air temperature and cold irrigation
water in northern mountain areas
Production season |
|
|
|
Planting |
Harvesting |
Main season |
May-Jul |
Oct-Nov |
Basic statistics, Pakistan |
|
1985 |
1990 |
1995 |
1998 |
1999 |
2000 |
Rice |
Area harvested (ha) |
1,863,200 |
2,112,700 |
2,161,800 |
2,423,600 |
2,515,400 |
2,312,200 |
Yield (t/ha) |
2.3 |
2.3 |
2.8 |
2.9 |
3.1 |
3.0 |
Production (t) |
4,378,400 |
4,891,200 |
5,949,750 |
7,010,700 |
7,733,400 |
7,000,000 |
Rice imports (t) |
7 |
25 |
68 |
854 |
1,471 |
na |
Paddy imports (t) |
0 |
0 |
44 |
1 |
0 |
na |
Rice exports (t) |
718,686 |
743,889 |
1,852,267 |
1,971,601 |
1,791,193 |
na |
Others |
Population, total (x103) |
101,202 |
119,155 |
136,244 |
148,166 |
152,331 |
na |
Population, agriculture (x103) |
61,579 |
66,220 |
72,360 |
76,579 |
78,021 |
na |
Agricultural area (x103 ha) |
25,610 |
25,940 |
26,550 |
27,040 |
na |
na |
Irrigated agricultural area (x103 ha) |
15,760 |
16,940 |
17,200 |
18,000 |
na |
na |
Total fertilizer consumption (t) |
1,511,119 |
1,892,899 |
2,507,669 |
2,461,254 |
na |
na |
Tractors used in agric. (no.) |
156,633 |
265,728 |
304,992 |
320,500 |
na |
na |
Source: FAOSTAT online database. |
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