ORCID Profile
0000-0003-2707-9073
Current Organisation
Bahauddin Zakariya University
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Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 06-11-2019
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 03-03-2019
DOI: 10.3390/SU11051326
Abstract: Sustainable supply chain management (SSCM) has recently received increasing attention from researchers and the business community. Due to globalization and changing consumption patterns, agri-food industries have undergone a transformation, and the sustainability of agri-food supply chains has also received greater attention. However, the issues of SSCM at the upstream level of the supply chain in agri-food industries have not been adequately empirically studied. This paper aims to list key issues or constraints in the production and marketing through farmers’ group discussions, supplemented by the literature, and empirically identifies key constraints to SSCM of the citrus industry in Pakistan. The paper used cross-sectional data from 300 farmers involved in the production and marketing of citrus in Punjab, Pakistan. Farmers were asked to answer on a Likert scale data about potential constraints identified from the literature and farmers’ group discussions. Kendell’s coefficient of concordance and the mean ranking technique was used to rank and to identify the critical constraints in the production and marketing of citrus. In addition, factor analysis (principal component analysis) was used for the grouping of these constraints. In production constraints, factors, such as fertilizer, pesticide, and seed quality, climate change, high production cost, and agricultural labor performance, are important. These constraints are aligned with some key marketing factors, such as packaging, grading, and storage facilities. The findings convey messages for policymakers to solve these issues and challenges at the upstream level of the SSCM chain in the citrus and related agri-food industries.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 12-02-2020
DOI: 10.3390/W12020497
Abstract: The basic objective of the irrigation reforms, i.e., participatory irrigation management in Pakistan, was a better economic and financial management of irrigation service delivery, equity in water distribution, and better environmental outcome. The aim of this study was to assess the optimism with the reforms package that has actually delivered expected outcomes. For this purpose, this study used a cross-sectional dataset of 567 farmers in five selected Area Water Boards (AWBs) of Punjab and Sindh provinces of Pakistan. Important institutional features including compliance, adaptiveness, clarity of objectives, good interaction, and appropriate scale, were modeled through structural equation modeling on the overall performance assessment of water use associations from a farmer’s perspective. Results suggested that clear objectives, adaptiveness, scale, and compliance show a strong relationship with an overall assessment of performance. While good interaction has not impacted significantly with an overall performance assessment. The impact of institutional feature on the overall performance assessment depends on the nature of performance considered, e.g., drivers of the economic performance of a farmer organization may not be the same as the drivers of its environmental performance. Besides offering insights on specific drivers that matter for a particular dimension of the institutional performance of farmer organizations, the study suggests that participatory irrigation management institutions are still in infancy even after decades of their introduction, and just creating institutions is neither mandatory nor sufficient. Furthermore, the institutional designs are considered critical for the success of participatory institutions. Therefore, there is a need to consider the conformity of the strategies with the existing norms and compliance to the on-going procedures.
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 05-2019
DOI: 10.1016/J.SCITOTENV.2019.02.266
Abstract: Pakistani farmers are using groundwater at an increasing rate to supplement their irrigation needs. This practice has led to overexploitation of groundwater in the country, resulting in many negative externalities and increased resource costs. In response to the growing water shortage, the informal groundwater markets in the arid and semi-arid regions of Punjab have gradually emerged. These markets are believed to improve the fair distribution of groundwater and encourage more efficient use of agricultural water. This study aims to investigate these claims through conducting a field survey of 120 farmers that are further ided into three groups i.e. buyers, self-users cum sellers, and self-users (control group). Further, the study employed a Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) approach to estimate the water use efficiency of all three type of groundwater actors. The study findings show that water buyers are mostly small farmers who do not own tube wells, hence buy water from tube well owners (large farmers). The study also found that groundwater markets improve the equity of water access to some extent, as water is transferred from large farmers to small farmers. The results of DEA analysis show water buyers and water sellers are more efficient in using water than the control group, making buyers the most efficient of all groups. Therefore, participation in water markets appears to be improving the WUE of farmers. The results of single bootstrapped truncated regression show that participation in water markets and access to extension services can improve WUE, while off-farm income and the diesel tube wells can reduce WUE in the study area. However, government could play an important role here through introducing groundwater regulations and improving water use efficiency for sustainable and equitable distribution of water among water users.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 07-04-2020
Abstract: There are numerous anticipated effects of climate change (CC) on agriculture in the developing and the developed world. Pakistan is among the top ten most prone nations to CC in the world. The objective of this analysis was to quantify the economic impacts of CC on the agricultural production system and to quantify the impacts of suggested adaptation strategies at the farm level. The study was conducted in the Punjab province’s rice-wheat cropping system. For this purpose, climate modeling was carried out by using two representative concentration pathways (RCPs), i.e., RCPs 4.5 and 8.5, and five global circulation models (GCMs). The crop modeling was carried out by using the Agricultural Production Systems Simulator (APSIM) and the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) crop simulation models (CSMs), which were tested on the cross-sectional data of 217 farm households collected from the seven strata in the study area. The socio-economic impacts were calculated using the Multidimensional Impact Assessment Tradeoff Analysis Model (TOA-MD). The results revealed that CC’s net economic impact using both RCPs and CSMs was negative. In both CSMs, the poverty status was higher in RCP 8.5 than in RCP 4.5. The adaptation package showed positive results in poverty reduction and improvement in the livelihood conditions of the agricultural households. The adoption rate for DSSAT was about 78%, and for APSIM, it was about 68%. The adaptation benefits observed in DSSAT were higher than in APSIM. The results showed that the suggested adaptations could have a significant impact on the resilience of the atmospheric changes. Therefore, without these adaptation measures, i.e., increase in sowing density, improved cultivars, increase in nitrogen use, and fertigation, there would be negative impacts of CC that would capitalize on livelihood and food security in the study area.
Publisher: ResearchersLinks Ltd
Date: 2021
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 07-06-2022
DOI: 10.3390/W14121832
Abstract: Groundwater irrigation has a critical role in the sustainability of arable farming in many developing countries including Pakistan. Groundwater irrigation is generally practiced to supplement surface water supplies in Pakistan. Nevertheless, uninterrupted and extensive use of groundwater irrigation has raised several concerns about its sustainability and resultant environmental implications. Due to the scarcity of groundwater and heterogeneity in farmers’ resources, informal groundwater markets have emerged in Pakistan, where farmers trade water using a contractual system. Yet, the effects of these markets on agricultural productivity and equity remain largely unknown. This paper aims to analyze the impact of participation in the groundwater market on farmland utilization, cropping patterns, water access, and income. We analyze these impacts using primary data collected from 360 farmers in three different zones of the country’s largest province. The farmers were categorized as buyers, sellers, and self-users of water. Results indicate that participation in water markets increased agricultural land utilization, evinced by a higher cropping intensity among participants. A horizontal and vertical equity analysis of water markets shows that although large farmers have better access to groundwater irrigation, water market participation improves equity to water access. Based on income inequality measures such as the Gini coefficient and the Lorenz curve, water market participation also improves farmer incomes regardless of farm size. Propensity score matching revealed that wheat yield and income among water-market participants went up by approximately 150 kg and PKR 4503 per acre compared with non-participants. Groundwater market participants’ higher crop productivity and income level suggest that water markets need a thorough revisit in terms of policy focus and institutional support to ensure sustainable rural development.
Publisher: CSIRO
Date: 2022
DOI: 10.25919/W3EV-6383
Publisher: Elsevier BV
Date: 02-2019
Publisher: Macrothink Institute, Inc.
Date: 28-04-2018
Abstract: The rate of urbanization in Pakistan especially in Punjab is quite high. The reason behind this is the high population growth that is about 2.4 percent in the last decade. This causes a burden on the farm size and in rural areas people have no choice except to move in the urban areas for their livelihood. The main objective of this study was to identify the key influential factors that affect the decision to migrate. Study evaluated the impact of economic, social, demographic, natural and climatic factors on the welfare of the migrants and non-migrant’s households. For this purpose, an extensive survey from 504 respondents was carried out in four districts of Punjab, Pakistan. Due to the dichotomous nature of the dependent variable i.e. migrant and non-migrant, logistic regression was employed on the collected data using Stata. Results revealed that unemployment, educational and health facilities, family conflicts, small farm size for agricultural activities, and greater family size are the main influencing factors affecting migration decision from rural to urban areas. This creates the strong implications i.e. putting burden on the urban areas due to the high rate of urbanization. So, it is however recommended to stem down the rate of migration all necessary facilities should be provided in the rural areas and Agro-based must be set up near the rural areas providing employment opportunities for the rural dwellers.
Publisher: CSIRO
Date: 2022
DOI: 10.25919/F6H5-K692
Publisher: Macrothink Institute, Inc.
Date: 11-09-2016
Abstract: The economy of Pakistan is mainly dependent on agriculture which is mainly owned by small farm householders. The rapidly increasing population and stagnant agricultural growth coupled with other economic issues are threatening food security and livelihood of rural population in Pakistan. The main objective of the study was to appraise the change in the agrarian structure in Punjab province and to see the current status and key trends in land holing and distribution. It is done by reviewing of the overtime structural changes in land holdings using inter-census data of 1960-2010 t enabled the present analyses to depict a clear picture of the overtime changes that had come about in the agrarian structure of Punjab. The magnitude of shifts from one period to the other was calculated with the help of Lorenz ratio and Gini coefficient. The study showed disparities in ownership and distribution of land holdings in Punjab. The findings suggested a decrease in inequality in land distribution through effective land reform and distribution. This will help to increase farm income of small-scale and subsistence farming communities to cater for the threatening issues of food insecurity.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 19-11-2018
DOI: 10.3390/SU10114281
Abstract: Urban migration unlocks new employment opportunities for rural dwellers in a productive manner. This study assessed the quality of employment of migrant workers, and its effect on rural households’ welfare. To this end, we used primary data collected from the four major districts of Lahore, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, and Sialkot in Punjab, Pakistan. These data include 504 immigrant and non-immigrant families in rural areas, and 252 migrant workers in urban destinations. We use IV probit and two-step sequential estimation methods for the empirical analysis. The study provides new insights for migration in Pakistan. First, migrant workers are better off in their new urban settings in terms of improved incomes and living conditions, but their social protection status is still poor. Second, the results of the employment quality models show that migration is a successful strategy for rural households to improve the quality of their employment. In addition, the characteristics of migrants and native households affect the relative improvement in the quality of employment and migrants’ conditions. Third, the results of the propensity score matching technique suggest that migration has a positive impact on rural households’ income, and these impacts are more pronounced in large cities. Based on the findings, the study recommends that the government should invest in quality education in rural areas, and ensure that social security schemes are provided for migrant workers in urban areas.
Publisher: MDPI AG
Date: 19-08-2019
DOI: 10.3390/SU11164482
Abstract: The livelihood of the people in the Himalayan range of Pakistan is largely dependent on the cultivation of fruits. Apricot and apple are the major fruits of this region, which are marketed throughout the country and also exported to other countries. Due to high perishability and the poor farm-to-market infrastructure in the region, farmers are unable to get maximum returns. This study was conducted keeping in view the importance of the region and the impacts of fruits on the livelihood of the farmhands. Cross-sectional data from 200 respondents were collected through a multistage random s ling technique. Factor analysis was employed to find out the constraint in the apricot production and propensity score matching estimates were employed to see the impact of apricot production on the farming communities in the study area. The results of the factor analysis show the most important group of constraints in the growth of the apricot industry is awareness, which is an internal factor. This is followed by production, policy, and marketing constraints. The least important is processing technology. Furthermore, the results show that apricot production has a significant positive impact on decreasing the poverty level of the household, depicting a great potential for the development of resilient livelihoods.
Publisher: SAGE Publications
Date: 23-12-2019
Abstract: Competitiveness is the ability to trade products that meet the requirements of global demand for better price, quality, and quantity. International competition in the agricultural and food industries has been significantly increased due to globalization. Furthermore, labor-intensive countries are losing competitiveness due to lack of local value addition and other development efforts. This study aims to examine the competitiveness of the mandarin industry for the world’s 15 leading mandarin exporters using revealed symmetric comparative advantage (RSCA). An attempt was also made to assess the effect of productivity growth and real effective exchange rate on the competitiveness of the mandarin industry through panel regression analysis. The results showed that RSCA patterns vary between the selected countries and only five countries, that is, Morocco, Spain, Pakistan, Turkey, and Peru have a comparative advantage in mandarin exports while all other countries have a comparative disadvantage. The highest change in the RSCA value was seen for Pakistan which gives a good indication of the status of the country in the development of its mandarin industry. For Pakistan, there is a need to explore the new high-value market to further exploit this comparative advantage and to increase export earnings.
No related grants have been discovered for Muhammad Asad ur Rehman Naseer.