Studying the Sugar Production Process in Pakistan
XVII. Research and Development To encourage research and study the Government has assigned the Province Agriculture Research Institutes to study and verify, with cooperation from the private sector, the best suited varieties of sugarcane in the area. To achieve high yield and high recovery characteristics two dedicated projects were to be set up by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture. It is important to note though that the Ministry of Food and Agriculture has been devolved under the 18th Amendment, where these projects have been diverted is a question yet to be investigated.47 The expertise of the grower as well as the resources available to the grower determines the quality of the crop. The issue is that Pakistan does not have institutions or bodies conducting research regarding improvements in agricultural productivity. The existing research institutions in the public sector are “starved� of funding.
47
National Sugar Policy, Government of Pakistan. 2009-10
y
45