FEEDING millions of people amid lockdowns and disrupted supply chains is a daunting task and its delivery requires that the federal and provincial governments think and act cohesively. The delivery also requires discipline on the part of all provincial and federal agencies and the private sector involved in the implementation of different parts of the task.

Broadly speaking, the task at hand is three-fold. We need to ensure that wheat — and even summer-maize — harvesting is carried out safely and farmers continue to tend to minor crops including those of pulses and vegetables. We need to ensure the unhindered and safe transportation of farm produce and food supplies across Pakistan. And finally, we need to devise a mechanism to feed the poor daily wage earners affected most by lockdowns.

Fortunately, there is lots of operational focus on feeding the poor and isolated people. Federal and provincial governments, social arms of some political parties and non-governmental organisations are all working for it.

Safe harvesting of wheat and unhindered transportation of supplies need to be ensured and a mechanism devised to feed the poor daily-wage earners

For the movement of farm produce and essential food items across and within provinces, lockdown restrictions have been relaxed. And for ensuring the continuation of work on farm fields especially during the upcoming wheat harvest, federal and provincial governments are coordinating.

During the last year, domestic human consumption of wheat was estimated at around 24.2 million tonnes and that of rice 3.4m tonnes. In addition to wheat and rice, maize is also used, though on a limited scale, as a staple food. Last year an estimated 1.2m tonnes out of the total output of 6.3m tonnes was used for making bread and other food items. Accounting for our population growth, we should expect a bit higher consumption of wheat, rice and maize. The federal government has constituted a national committee to oversee the availability and supplies of food. The committee must also be required to share details of the stocks of food commodities with media and provincial breakups should be made public. If this is not done, speculations would continue creating short-lived food crises and making it difficult for federal and provincial authorities to focus on the fight against Covid-19. Already reports of short supplies of wheat flour and sugar have once again sent their prices to new heights at a time when the provincial government is busy fighting the coronavirus.

Sugarcane production this year has declined for the second consecutive year to 65m tonnes from 67m tonnes a year earlier. The Pakistan Sugar Mills Association claims that this has affected sugar production in the country adding that with the carryover stock of about 1.4m tonnes of 2019, total availability this year would be down to 6.6m tonnes against 7.7m tonnes last year. Against this, domestic consumption this year is estimated to be around 5.6m tonnes. So, technically speaking there shouldn’t be any sugar crisis in the country.

The case of wheat is different though. Unless uncertainty about the smooth harvesting of the crop amid lockdowns is put to rest, markets would continue to speculate on supplies. Since media reports about the inadequacy of wheat reserves fuel speculations, the high-level committee tasked with ensuring food supplies during the Covid-19 emergency must take provinces and public into confidence.

As the number of coronavirus cases rises in the country, ensuring the unimpeded movement of goods transport across Pakistan is becoming difficult. On March 31, the federal government feeling unhappy with Sindh’s government “lack of cooperation” in this regard asked paramilitary rangers to ensure free movement of goods transport. A better way of doing this would have been to remove Sindh’s concern – if there were any. On the other hand, the Sindh government complained that the federal authorities were delaying sharing of data on daily wage earners making it difficult for provincial authorities to distribute free ration bags among them.

These two examples show how our political leadership can mess up even during crisis management. This must come to end. During this health crisis, ensuring the safe and smooth movement of food supplies across provinces is a must. And so is sharing of critical data that provinces can rely on for distributing food hand-outs to those in need.

Right from the surfacing of the first Covid-19 case on Feb 26, the response of federal and provincial governments has not been in unison. Business lobbies were also found wanting on forming a joint strategy alongside authorities. The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry complained it was not taken on board by the federal government till the end of March on how to ensure availability of food items amid lockdowns. Farmer lobbies made similar complaints about both federal as well as provincial governments. One fallout of the delay in the formation of a joint strategy to combat Covid-19 was that markets witnessed an increase in prices of wheat flour, rice, cooking oil, pulses and packaged food items — whereas prices of milk and most vegetables, particularly tomatoes, crashed.

Stabilising prices of essential food items is as necessary as checking the hoarding and panic-induced bulk buying as both can disturb the normal functioning of markets and affect supplies negatively with a time lag.

The holy month of Ramazan is due to begin in the last week of April. It would be better if the federal and provincial governments engage farmer lobbies, food manufacturing companies and importers, exporters and domestic bulk traders of food items. Without taking their inputs at all levels of decision-making, no strategy to fight the coronavirus-triggered food crisis can succeed. —MA

Published in Dawn, The Business and Finance Weekly, April 6th, 2020