TANDO JAM (March 18 2004): Sindh Food and Agriculture Minister Arif Mustafa Jatoi has said that the soil science is unique as it draws from ecology, geology, biology and many other natural and life sciences, and expressed hope that the 'Congress of Soil Science' would have adequate deliberation and would come out with concrete recommendations for strategic planning of agriculture policy.

Addressing the opening ceremony of the three-day 10th Congress of Soil Science' on 'Management of Natural Resources for Food Security' at Sindh Agriculture University, Tando Jam, on Monday, he said that the topic of the Congress "is highly relevant" to the issues confronting agriculture and the challenges ahead.

He said that agriculture is the mainstay of Pakistan as it accounts for 25 percent of GDP which stimulates economic growth, food security and poverty alleviation.

He said there was no doubt that crop yield has registered a significant increase over the years but there was a lot of unexploited potential whereby crop yield could be further increased by 50 to 100 percent.

The main concern was increasing use of inputs and inefficient water management practices, which have not only increased the cost of production but also reduced the profit of the grower.

The solution to this lies in effective farm management on modern lines without disturbing the resource base such as land, environment, long-term sustainable agriculture production and marketability of agriculture produce at fair price.

He hoped that the Congress would focus on core issues and formulate strategies to overcome the problems, including food security, for the ever-increasing population of the country.

He said the present situation warrants urgent attention and a sustainable solution for the development of the agriculture sector in the country.

He said topics such as alkaline and acid sulphate salts, river salinity, irrigation salinity and secondary salting be given the attention they deserve.

Earlier, Dr Nisar Ahmed, President of Soil Science Society of Pakistan, said that main resources are climate, water, soil, forest and wildlife on which agriculture, forestry and rural land use depends.

They are on the decay due to land degradation but can be conserved by sustainable land management.

He said that at present around 11 percent (1.5 billion hectares) of the globe's land (3.4 billion hectares) is under crop cultivation.

This area represents slightly over 36 per cent of the land estimated to some degree suitable for crop production.

The fact that there remain some 2.7 billion hectares with crop production potential suggests that there is still scope for further expansion of agriculture land which negates the perception of some quarters that there is very little land to bring under cultivation.

He said that degradation of land at the rate of 0.5 percent a year compared to 0.1 percent new infrastructure a year and other forms of degradation affect 30 percent of world's irrigated lands, 40 percent rained agriculture land and 70 percent of range lands.

The productivity loss due to degradation over three decades has been estimated at 12 percent of total production of irrigated land.

Quoting the World Commission on Water report he said that the water use would be increased by 50 percent in the coming 30 years, and half of the world population would be under severe water stress in 2025.

He said that irrigation water withdrawals normally far exceed the consumptive water use because of water losses during transport and distribution from its source to crops.

He said in many countries withdrawals already exceed environmental limits while many others are exploiting groundwater aquifers.

He said that presently one quarter of people in developing countries survive on fragile lands.

They account for many people in extreme poverty, living on less than a dollar per day. In South Asia about 24.4 percent population is living on fragile lands. In Pakistan, 30 to 50 percent people are living on fragile lands and this population has been doubled since 1950.

He said the direct an indirect causes of land degradation are linked with population growth and poverty.

The limited land resources and increase in rural population results in small farms, lower production and increase in landlessness.

He said that land shortage and poverty taken together lead to non-sustainable management practices--the direct causes of degradation.

This is a vicious cycle of causes and effects of land degradation, low productivity and poverty.

He said the only way to intervene in this nexus is further research and application of new emerging technology.

Other speakers included Vice Chancellor of Sindh Agriculture University Dr Bashir Ahmed Chandio.

Dr Kazi Suleman Memon. past Vice-President of S.S.S.P, presented vote of thanks.

Over 300 delegates, including 50 delegates from abroad are attending the Congress which will continue up to March 19.

Courtesy Business Recorder