Pakistan may import about 7 million cotton bales after floods damage crop, stakeholders say
Karachi: Pakistan is expected to import as much as 7 million bales of cotton this year as devastating floods have washed away hundreds of thousands of acres crops in the South Asian nation, the Karachi Cotton Brokers Forum (KCBF) and other stakeholders said on Sunday.
Pakistan ranks among one of most vulnerable countries to climate change, where recent flash floods have killed more than 1,000 people and inundated major crops like cotton, sugarcane, rice, maize and wheat storages, risking the government’s 4.2 percent economic growth target this fiscal year.
The deluges have damaged approximately 2.5 million acres of all crops that is equivalent to 7.7 percent of Pakistan’s total cultivated area, KCBF Chairman Naseem Usman said, citing a recent presentation of the food security ministry to a parliamentary committee.
The authorities have started assessing the total flood damages as a technical team from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is visiting Pakistan to review the government’s performance under its $7 billion loan program and $1.4 billion climate resilience facility.
