(16 March, 2018)
President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum (PBIF), President AKIA, Senior Vice Chairman of the Businessmen Panel of FPCCI and former provincial minister Mian Zahid Hussain on Friday said the daisy sector is neglected by the policy makers and Government due to which it couldn’t support the national economy according to its potential.
Dairy sector is the largest informal sector with association of more than 8.5 million people. Share of formal sector is just 3 – 5 percent while the rest is owned by informal sector. Despite the fact that Pakistan is World’s third largest producer of milk, its share in exports is very low and investors have least interest in this sector despite of its huge potential, he added.
The veteran business leader said general public have reduced trust on the quality of traditional milk produced in informal sector due to which demand for packed dairy products have risen vastly, which has adversely affected the informal dairy sector. There is an urgent need of registering this sector, so that it may have its due share of incentives as well as in development of national economy, better rate of return and balanced prices of milk and other products throughout the year; this will not only improve the dairy sector but will also resolve the problems of common masses with respect to shortage of milk in the market, strikes of milk sellers and higher rates.
The former minister said that the demand for dairy products is expected to rise by 36 percent in 2024 due to which China, Saudi Arabia and other countries are increasing investments in this sector. New investors are encouraged to invest in the value added sector of dairy products like cream, cheese, butter and ice-cream, which can play significant role in increasing foreign exchange through exports.
He said according to the census of 2017, livestock has share of approximately 50 percent, which is the sub-sector of Agriculture and has share of 11 percent in Country’s GDP. Despite all these facts, Government has not given due consideration to develop this sector, which is discouraging. To resolve the serious issues pertaining to this sector, it is important that the entire chain of dairy sector get registered which will not only benefit the people working in this sector, but will also give much relief to the general public in term of regular supply and sustainable rates.
