Closeout ceremony of the project “The Horticulture Advancement Activity” (THAzA), was held in Islamabad on December 8, 2022. Funded by USAID, THAzA improved the livelihoods of rural farmers in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). It supported 12,000 businesses and created 1,300 jobs. It also ensured that rural farmers in these regions were able to gain access to technological advancements that were previously unavailable to rural communities.

Michael Rossman, Deputy Mission Director, USAID  praised the accomplishments of the THAzA program and appreciated the efforts of THAzA for empowering the youth and women of KP and Balochistan by providing them improved access to resources, training on specialized skills and agricultural technologies, and entrepreneurship opportunities.

Ms. Florence Rolle, FAO Representative in Pakistan, commended the efforts of THAzA and highlighted the efforts of this four-year project. She said that THAzA has specifically engaged youth and women within the agricultural sector by providing them improved access to resources, specialized skills in agricultural technologies, and entrepreneurship.

On behalf of the Governments of KP and Balochistan, Secretary, Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperative Department KP and Mr. Abdullah Khan, the Secretary of P&D, Balochistan conveyed their sincere gratitude to USAID and FAO for their support to bolster economic empowerment and increase food security for communities in these regions.

They further said that the governments of KP and Balochistan recognize the quality support in the shape of THAzA to boost competitiveness of the selected commodity chains and expressed satisfaction over the achievements in this regard.

Waleed Mahdi, FAO International Provincial Coordinator and Chief of Party for THAzA termed THAzA as the flagship project of FAO in KP and Balochistan as it has attracted other donors to invest in the development of various value chains by introducing stable agri-preneurs.