Smart Agriculture: A Panacea to Mitigating Climatic Impacts
Rashid Ali Panhwer
Karachi: As Pakistan ranks among the most vulnerable countries to climate change, its impacts have permeated every aspect of life, most notably water resources and food production. Once considered a distant threat, climate change has now become a pressing reality, manifesting through extreme weather events, heatwaves, droughts, and devastating floods, putting the nation’s agricultural future at grave risk.
The urgency to address this man-made crisis is echoed at every international forum, pushing experts and governments to explore solutions like Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) — an approach aimed at managing crops more naturally and effectively to counter the looming threats.
“Changing climate patterns have emerged as a serious threat to global economies and agricultural production, and Pakistan is no exception,” said Dr. Ghulam Mohammad Ali, Chairman of the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC).
“Climate-Smart Agriculture practices are vital and should be expanded across the country to improve crop yields and ensure food security.”
Pakistan’s Potential
Pakistan’s diverse weather patterns provide fertile grounds for various crops. Yet, Dr. Ali emphasized that implementing CSA on a broad scale requires substantial investment and resources. “We need a huge amount under the Climate Fund for Agriculture to save water and ensure food security,” he said, adding that PARC is introducing modern techniques to enhance yields, including aeroponic methods for producing local potato seeds — a move that could significantly reduce crop imports.
Encouraging farmers to shift towards heat-tolerant crops and adopt high-efficiency irrigation systems is critical for building resilience. According to Dr. Ali, scaling up the use of climate-friendly farming technologies can lead to substantial improvements in production while safeguarding the environment.
A Sector at Risk
Agriculture remains the backbone of Pakistan’s economy, contributing 22.9 percent to the GDP and providing employment to 37.4 percent of the population, according to data from the Ministry of National Food Security and Research. For millions — 34 percent of men and an overwhelming 74 percent of women — it is a primary source of livelihood.
Yet, the sector is increasingly imperiled. The World Bank’s Climate Knowledge Portal warns that shifting monsoon patterns and rising temperatures will impose severe challenges on Pakistan’s agricultural landscape. Recurrent floods and droughts have already wreaked havoc: the 2010 floods left nearly 90 million people food insecure, while the devastating 2022 floods affected 33 million citizens and damaged millions of acres of farmland, according to UN-Pakistan reports.
Climate Injustice and Global Responsibility
Ironically, despite contributing less than one percent to global greenhouse gas emissions, Pakistan continues to bear the brunt of climate change. Ranked 8th on the Global Climate Risk Index 2021 for vulnerability, Pakistan’s exposure to extreme climate events is a stark reminder of the injustice embedded in the global climate crisis.
Across cities and rural areas alike, citizens are already experiencing intensifying heatwaves. Daily life is increasingly shaped by the need to seek shelter from unbearable temperatures — a glimpse of the broader health and social challenges on the horizon if climate change remains unaddressed.
Experts stress that adopting CSA practices nationwide could dramatically reduce climate vulnerabilities and stabilize the country’s food systems. However, achieving this requires more than local initiatives.
Pakistan must mobilize domestic resources for water conservation and agricultural resilience, but global support is equally crucial. Developed nations particularly those responsible for the bulk of greenhouse gas emissions must honor their commitments by providing enhanced funding under the Climate Fund for Agriculture.
Only with international financial assistance can smallholder and large-scale farmers in vulnerable countries like Pakistan adopt modern, sustainable practices and withstand the mounting pressures of a changing climate.
Without decisive action now, Pakistan’s agriculture sector — and the millions of lives it supports — could face an increasingly uncertain future.
The feature report was released by APP on April 27, 2025.
