KARACHI: Pakistan on Wednesday set this year’s export target of kinnow mandarin at 350,000 metric tons, with a third of it earmarked for the Middle East.
As the harvest season for the high-yield local mandarin variety started in December, Pakistan is expecting to generate some $210 million from its export. Last year, kinnow exports brought around $195 million in foreign exchange, according to data from the All Pakistan Fruit and Vegetable Exporters Association (PFVA).
“Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Oman, and Qatar are major export destinations which are expected to absorb 30 percent, or 105,000 metric tons, of the total exports of kinnow,” Waheed Ahmed, patron-in-chief of PFVA, told Arab News.
Demand for Pakistani fruits has increased by 12.5 percent in fiscal year 2019-20, generating $730 million — the sector’s highest ever revenue generation in terms of foreign exchange. The PFVA chief attributed the rising demand, especially for citrus fruits, to the coronavirus pandemic. Rich in vitamin C, the fruits are believed to support the immune system.
Pakistan is the world’s largest kinnow producer, but its yield often suffers quality issues. While local fruit exporters estimate that domestic production of kinnow could reach even 2.1 million tons this year, only a portion of it will be of export quality.
“The total production of kinnow is around 2.1 million ton,” Ahmed said. “However, the production of quality exportable kinnow is far less, as out of total production 75 percent production consists of grade B and C quality that can’t be exported.”
The country’s kinnow industry is worth around Rs125 billion ($781 million) and the entire economy of Punjab’s key Bhalwal and Sargodha areas depends on kinnow cultivation. Some 250 kinnow processing facilities in the region provide direct employment to 250,000 people, according to PFVA data.
Third of Pakistan’s 2020 mandarin exports earmarked for the Middle East
https://arab.news/y4hrw
Third of Pakistan’s 2020 mandarin exports earmarked for the Middle East
- This year’s export target of kinnow mandarin set at 350,000 metric tons, some $210 million expected to be generated from export
- Rising demand for citrus fruits can be attributed to the coronavirus pandemic with the vitamin C-rich fruits believed to support the immune system
Pakistan planning minister to attend Bangladesh PM oath-taking ceremony tomorrow
- New members of Bangladesh’s federal cabinet will be sworn in on Tuesday in Dhaka
- Pakistan, Bangladesh have moved closer amid recent thaw in relations between the two
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal will attend the swearing-in ceremony of the new Bangladesh government this week, foreign office spokesperson Tahir Andrabi confirmed on Monday.
Tarique Rahman’s Bangladesh Nationalist Party (BNP) won a landslide victory in the elections on Thursday, the first since a deadly 2024 uprising ousted the iron-fisted rule of former premier Sheikh Hasina. The BNP won at least 209 seats out of the 299 contested, according to results released by Bangladesh’s Election Commission on Friday, paving the way for Rahman to become the country’s next prime minister.
According to Rahman’s office, the swearing-in ceremony will take place at the South Plaza of the National Parliament Building in Dhaka at 4:00pm on Tuesday. Bangladesh President Mohammed Shahabuddin is expected to administer oath to members of the new cabinet. The prime minister of Bhutan, Tshering Tobgay and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla from India will attend the event along with other foreign dignitaries.
“Yes, Ahsan Iqbal will represent Pakistan there,” Andrabi told Arab News when asked whether the planning minister will attend the ceremony.
Iqbal will represent Pakistan as Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is in Austria on an official visit, the first by a Pakistani prime minister in 30 years to the country, to review bilateral trade, investment and economic ties.
Pakistan and Bangladesh have improved bilateral ties amid a recent thaw in relations. Pakistan and Bangladesh were part of the same country until Bangladesh’s secession following a bloody civil war in 1971, an event that long cast a shadow over bilateral ties.
Both countries have moved closer since August 2024, following the ouster of Hasina who was considered an India ally. While Pakistan-Bangladesh ties warm up, relations between Dhaka and New Delhi remain strained over India’s decision to grant asylum to Hasina.
The success of BNP chief Rahman, 60, marks a remarkable turnaround for a man who only returned to Bangladesh in December 2025 after 17 years in exile in Britain, far from Dhaka’s political storms.
Rahman is the son of former prime minister Khaleda Zia and former president Ziaur Rahman. He returned to Bangladesh late last year after nearly two decades of self-imposed exile in the UK, and assumed BNP’s leadership days later, following his mother’s death from a prolonged illness.
In an interview with Arab News last week, the 60-year-old pledged to pursue accountability for the former leadership and meet the political and economic expectations of the youth movement that brought about the change.
Additional input from AFP
