Ambassador Masood Khan invites Cargill to enhance investments in Pak agri & bio-industrial sectors

ISLAMABAD, June 23 (SABAH): Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States Sardar Muhammad Masood Khan has invited Cargill to enhance its investments in Pak agri and bio-industrial sectors.

Vice President Cargill Inc. Colin D’Silva and Director Betsy Bryant Struse have assured Pakistan Ambassador to the United States Sardar Muhammad Masood Khan, that Cargill, a US-led conglomerate, will enhance and diversify its investments in Pakistan in the fields of agriculture and bio industry. Washington DC. D’Silva said, “Pakistan is an emerging market with a huge potential for growth in agriculture and green technologies.” The company has already invested $200 million in agriculture sector of the country. More should be forthcoming. 

Sardar Massood Khan said that Pakistan is fast moving toward mechanization of its agriculture sector in order to enhance its output and productivity. Modernisation of the agriculture sector, the backbone of economy, is our foremost priority, he said. “We aim to benefit from the US expertise and would welcome US Foreign Direct Investment, especially in the agricultural sector because agronomy is our backbone”, he said. 

Masood Khan said that use of advanced technology in agriculture sector would not only ensure food security in the country but also serve to further strengthen Pak-US partnership in this critical sector. The Ukrainian crisis has created a huge challenge of food security that can only be addressed with enhanced cooperation and mutual support, stated the ambassador. 

He especially highlighted various steps taken by the government to improve regulatory regime and ease of doing business in the country. Ambassador Masood Khan also invited Cargill to invest in Special Economic Zones in Pakistan which offer huge economic incentives to international investors and business community. 

The ambassador assured Cargill of all possible support in expanding its business activities in manufacturing, food processing and transportation sectors which constitute core areas of expertise of the corporation. Ambassador Khan invited Cargill to produce agricultural products for exports to the Gulf region, West Asia, Europe and Africa. The Ambassador expressed the confidence that “Pakistan would soon become self-sufficient in grains and fertilizers and become a bread basket for multiple regions.”