FAO in Pakistan

Farmers in Merged Districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa receive Rabi Crop Packages

15/12/2020

07/12/2020, Peshawar - The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United provides climate-resilient certified wheat seed to farmers in tribal areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with financial support from United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to support Rabi season cultivation in newly merged districts of the province under “Restoring Subsistence and Commercial Agriculture” programme.
Farmers received support in form of quality seed and land development in North Waziristan and South Waziristan. One thousand Acres of land was developed in both districts, five hundred farmers from each were provided with 50kg certified wheat seed per household.
The support will make this year’ s Rabi cultivation take place timely despite the farmers’ economic difficulties caused by COVID-19 catastrophe. Provision of seeds and land preparation has given hopes to vulnerable farming community as high cultivation costs this year were hard to meet.  Food security of tens of millions of people depends on current cultivation season, as next wheat harvest will not be until spring 2021 and wheat is 80% of every Pakistani’ s daily intake.
With the Covid-19 pandemic affecting the farming community, FAO is stepping up efforts to protect livelihoods of food producers and all food chain workers by providing quality agri-input packages. Through a number of interventions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s merged districts, FAO has introduced high-value crops and agriculture value chains to create sustainable livelihoods for the farmers.