ISLAMABAD: Italian experts will impart training to local olive farmers on pruning, irrigation, fertilizer, disease, and orchard management. The training session will be started by next month, officials said.
Training program for olive farmers
The comprehensive training program was designed by Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) for the farmers to promote olive cultivation in Pakistan. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Balochistan research centers will implement the programs.
Pakistan’s Project Director of Olive Cultivation at National Agriculture Research Center (NARC) Dr. Ahmad Tariq said that farmers would be trained in innovative technologies to attain maximum output of olive.
Olive farmers of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa
He said that as many as seven training sessions will be conducted in different areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province of Pakistan. He added that a training program was also developed for farmers of Balochistan and Punjab provinces of the South Asian country.
He expressed concern that the domestic output of olive oil is likely reduced by 30 percent during the current season due to the negative impact of climate change. He said that more than 110 tons of extra virgin olive oil of international standards were extracted in the previous year.
Dr. Ahmad Tariq said that the government of Pakistan is intended to bring more than 9,000 hectares of land under olive cultivation as 1.2 million olive plants will be planted in the current fiscal year. He further said that about 500,000 wiled olive trees would be grafted during the current season. – APP
