H.E. Jean-François Cautain the Ambassador of European Union Delegation (EUD) to Pakistan visited Sargodha on 27 January 2016 to observe the support provided by the European Union funded Trade Related Technical Assistance II (TRTA II) programme for the Kinnow sector in Pakistan. Development Advisor for Trade and Economic Cooperation, Ms. Roshan Ara also accompanied the Ambassador.
H.E. Jean-François Cautain and the delegation paid visit to a Kinnow farm and witnessed different farm activities; such as furrow irrigation system, fertilizer application and use of Kinnow harvest bag. The delegates appreciated the efforts of the TRTA II Programme for introducing the Furrow Maker and Kinnow Harvesting Bag. The farmers informed the Ambassador that the furrow irrigation system saves at least 40% water and now they are able to effectively irrigate the whole orchard which was previously not possible with the water available. He further informed that after adopting the practices suggested in the Codes of Practices developed by the TRTA II programme, the yield has increased by at least 25% and the losses have also reduced.
The delegates also visited the Citrus Research Institute (CRI). At CRI, Mr Altaf-ur-Rehman Khan and Mr Abdul Aziz briefed the delegates about the TRTA II interventions in Kinnow sector. After the briefing at CRI, the delegates visited the Kinnow Export Pack House, i.e., Mateela Kinnow Factory. At Mateela Kinnow Factory the EU officials witnessed the Kinnow processing procedures for export purposes. The exporters praised TRTA II’s efforts of introducing the Pakistan Kinnow as a Juiceable mandarin in the high end markets. The EU delegation was accompanied by Mr. Badar ul Islam and Mr. Aurangzaib from United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).
TRTA II has assisted the farmer community in this region with numerous initiatives; these include development of Codes of Practice through the Farmer Field Schools, capacity building of the national institutions, development of clusters for conducting Farmer Field Schools, training of Master Trainers, introduction of Furrow Maker and the Kinnow Harvesting Bag and Market Linkages through international exposure, participation in trade fairs and by organizing B2B meeting to help increase exports and bring about improvements in the supply chain.
